Because Of You
by Insaine
Summary: Alice Moore has lived a hard life. She takes care of the house while her mother and brother try to provide for the broken family. When Sebastian saves her from a horrible fate and offers her an alternative and informs her of a special gift she possesses, how could she refuse? Rated M just in case. FinnyxOC
1. Chapter 1

Alice's POV

"Anna, please take Nathaniel inside. He'll freeze to death out here." I chastised my sister as I pulled the bed sheets down from the line. She shifted the two years old weight in her arms, but didn't move. "Where's Patrick?" I folded the sheet and dropped it into the basket and turned to her. "I don't know, Anna. Go inside." I picked up the basket and walked past her into the house. She followed me into the bedroom we shared and sat on my bed while I changed her sheets. "When is Patrick going to be back?" "I don't know, Anna." I said without looking at her. I could feel her staring into my back as I finished the bed. I walked over to Anna and took our cousin out of her arms. I bounced him up and down as I rocked him back and forth, "Anna, can you go see where Robert is?" She looked up at me with our father's eyes and nodded. She got up and went to search of our younger brother as I laid Nathaniel down in his crib. I started to change my own sheets as I heard soft, rapid footsteps coming toward the room. "Anna, I thought…" I turned to see my younger brother, Robert standing in the doorway with tears in his blue eyes, "Alice! Mother needs you." I nodded and started out of the room. Robert began to follow me, but I held up my hand to him, "Stay with Nathaniel, please." Our eyes met and he nodded. I took the steps two at a time and found my way into the living room. My mother was standing in the middle of the room partially between Anna and a man I didn't recognize.

"Anna, go upstairs." I ordered quietly as I reached my sister. She looked up quickly to me and then ran out of the room and up the stairs. "Robert said you needed me, Mother?" I asked. She turned, obviously surprised to see me in Anna's place. She turned her back to the man and nodded, "I need you to-" my mother was cut off by the man pushing past her and grabbed my wrist tightly. I flinched at the pain and turned my head away, fighting the tears that were stinging my eyes. He used his free hand to make me face him, pinching my chin to make me meet his gaze. "She's a pretty thing. How much for an hour with her?" The man had dark eyes and blonde hair, he was dressed in a wealthy fashion, and had a simple ring on his left hand. Obviously he was one of my mother's 'clients'. "She is not for sale." My mother put her hand on his shoulder, but he shrugged it off, "Really? I can make it worth your while." He released my face and reached into his pocket, but before he could pull out what he was searching for, a strong hand pulled him away from me and pushed him toward the door. "My sister doesn't do that. Get out of here." The man pulled himself upright and straightened out his clothes before leaving. My brother, Patrick, stood before me watching him go. Patrick was the exact image of my father. Dark hair, green eyes, and incredibly tall. He turned to me, "What do you think you're doing?" I took a deep breathe, unsure how to answer him. Patrick was over a foot taller and was my father in almost every way. I felt myself begin fold in on myself under his cold gaze. I didn't answer and he shook his head, "Go upstairs." I nodded and began to run up the stairs away from my brother. I heard his voice begin to rise and my mother.

I closed the door behind me and found my younger siblings staring at me. "Alice, what's going on?" I shook my head and picked up the laundry basket, "Nothing. Just stay here, I need to go to work." I grabbed my bag and started out the door until I remembered the fight going on downstairs. I turned around and looked out the window. Snow was starting to fall lightly outside. I opened the window and climbed out onto the roof. "Alice!" I pressed my finger to my lips and smiled at Anna and Robert who stood inside of the window, "You'll wake up Nathaniel." With that I jumped and grabbed onto one of the branches of the tree next to my house. I hung for a few seconds before dropping the three feet to the ground. I felt the shock spread through my ankles and then it was gone. I smiled up to my younger siblings in the window and waved to them before heading to my job at the seamstresses shop.


	2. Chapter 2

Alice's POV

I could her the blood pumping in my ears and feel my heart pounding in my chest as I ran. I turned down every side street I came across hoping to lose him, praying he got confused and lost in the confusion of my turns. I ducked down an alleyway, in hopes that he wouldn't find me. I could still hear the heavy, quick paced footsteps coming after me. I looked back to see how far he was and felt my feet slip out from under me as I tripped on the ice. I slammed down onto the hard pavement as the footsteps slowed to a halt beside me. "Now, Miss I'd appreciate it if you stopped running away." My breath caught in my throat at the sound of the familiar voice. "You're the man from earlier." I said stupidly. He smiled cruelly at me, "You're that little girl who wasn't for sale. Your brother threw me out into the streets. Well I know just how to get back at him, don't I?" He picked me up by the front of my dress and slammed me back into the floor. I heard my scream, but it sounded far away. "You won't try to resist me will you?" The pain in my head prevented me from moving as he moved his hand up my thigh.

Sebastian's POV

I watched unobserved from the other side of the alley. The girl was about five feet tall, long white hair with bangs, crystal blue eyes, and pale skin. This was Alice Moore. I watched her run down the alley and trip. The man who had been pursuing her advanced on her and I waited. I had to see if she used her gift. He lifted her up and slammed her into the ice and climbed on top of her. I sighed, she was going to fit in perfectly with the lot back at the manor.

Alice's POV

"Excuse me, Sir?" The man stopped and turned around, "Hey, who do you-" The man was pulled off of me in a flash of black and thrown down the alleyway. The new arrival in black offered me a white, gloved hand, "May I help you, Miss Alice?" I took his hand and he pulled me up effortlessly into a standing position. I looked down the alley to see the man motionless about five feet away. "He's not dead, just unconscious." I looked up into the face of my savior and found him smiling down at me. He had long black hair and brownish almost red eyes and pale skin. "How did you know my name?" I asked observing him. "I've come to offer you a position of employment at the Phantomhive manor. If you accept you'll be living there with the rest of our staff. You'll get a regular salary and you'll be able to use your gift to its full potential." I looked up at the strange man curiously, "Phantomhive? The toy makers? What gift?" I asked quickly, not understanding. The man walked over to the man and slipped off the ring from his finger and handed it to me. "Concentrate on the ring." I eyed him suspiciously, but did as I was told. After a moment I felt a rush of emotion fall over me that wasn't my own. Pure joy and bliss erupted in me and an image of a woman in white flashed through my mind. I dropped the ring in surprise and looked up at the man, "What was that?" I didn't know how to feel about the instantaneous image I'd seen. "It's your gift."

I watched the man as he slipped the ring back onto the unconscious man's hand. "Who are you?" I asked. He smiled at me, "How terribly rude of me. My name is Sebastian. I'm the Phantomhive butler." I watched him as he approached me and stood towering over my small stature. "So do you accept my offer?" I shook my head, "I can't, my family needs me. Without me, what would happen to them?" The man I now knew as Sebastian smiled down at me, "If you do accept your wages can be sent to your family. They'll be living very comfortably." I looked down for a moment and considered, "My mother…" "She'll be able to stop the line of work she's in, yes." I didn't realize that I'd spoken aloud until Sebastian answered me. "Okay… I'll do it." I looked up at Sebastian and he smiled down at me, "Lovely. Would you like to go pick up your things? I can take you now." I nodded. We walked out to the street where I was led to a carriage and let in. We rode in silence to my home where I got out alone, "Please wait here. I would like to explain to my family." Sebastian nodded understandingly and I walked into my home to face my family.

Patrick's POV

My sister walked into the house and I stood up, ready to punish her for leaving like she did when I saw the state of her clothes. They were dirty and slightly torn. "What happened to you?" She looked down at herself, "I was attacked in an alleyway on the way home from the seamstresses shop. The man from earlier followed me." I gritted my teeth together and started toward the door. "Patrick, stop. I'm okay. A man stopped him and saved me. Where's Mother?" I stopped and looked at her. She sounded rushed and desperate. "What do you need her for?" Just as I asked our mother walked into the room, "Alice, what happened to you?" Alice went up to my mother and took her hands. "Mother, I'm leaving. I'm going to work for the Phantomhive household." My mother looked to me for help and I walked over to my sister and looked down at her, "You're going to do what?"

Alice's POV

I explained what Sebastian had told me, not wanting to keep him waiting. I watched my brother's face get redder by the second and my mother had tears in her eyes. "How could you just leave? After all we've been through this past year!" My brother raised his hand to hit me, an action I knew all too well. I braced for the impact, but it never came. I opened my eyes to see Sebastian standing between my brother and me holding his wrist mid swing. "Alice, your bags are packed and in the carriage. If you're ready to leave we may." I looked at Patrick with tears in my eyes and nodded, "I suppose I am ready." I looked up at the top of the stairs and waved to Robert and Anna who were looking down at me, "Take good care of Nathaniel, Anna." She nodded and Robert wiped away tears from his eyes. I turned and Sebastian followed me out. I waited for him to get in front of me and I followed him into the carriage and watched out the window as we road toward my new home at Phantomhive manor.


	3. Chapter 3

Alice's POV

As we got farther away from my home I turned to Sebastian who seemed to be watching me. "So what is my job going to be exactly?" He smiled, "You'll have a number of jobs, but mainly it will be sowing, and laundry, changing the sheets on the beds, things of that nature." I nodded, "You said there are other servants… What are they like?" "There are four other Servants besides myself. Mey-Rin is our other maid. She's a bit older than you, she's twenty-eight. She tends to be incredibly clumsy, so I hope that having you around will help her not break anything. Then we have Baldroy who is the cook at the manor. He tends to rush things and making disasters in the kitchen." "How old is he?" I asked hoping to find someone closer to my age. Sebastian didn't look old, but he wasn't sixteen either. As if reading my mind he smiled sympathetically at me, "Baldroy just turned thirty last month. However, Finnian is about your age. He's seventeen." I perked up, glad to know of another teenager in the manor, "Tell me about him." I pleaded hopefully. Sebastian chuckled and then met my eye, "Finny is our gardener. He's very naïve and he likes to be outside." I waited for Sebastian to continue, but when it seemed obvious he wasn't planning on telling me anymore I had to ask, "What about the last servant? You said there were four others." He smiled at me, "You'll have to wait to meet Tanaka. He's quite a character. He's the former butler of the Phantomhive manor, but he has stayed around to share his wisdom when it's needed." I nodded as we pulled up to a huge estate. We rode through the gardens and I watched as the freshly trimmed trees flew by. I stepped out behind Sebastian and looked around. "Sebastian!" We both looked up at the sound of the butler's name only to see three people running toward us. I gasped and moved to hide behind the butler. I'd been excited to meet the other's, but I hadn't expected to see them so soon or all at once.

I observed them all carefully and silently thanked God that Sebastian had told me about them so I wasn't so confused. I noticed Baldroy first. He was in a typical chief's uniform with a white apron. He had dirty blonde hair and blue eyes. A cigarette hung from his lips as he approached us followed by a girl, who by default had to be Mey-Rin. She had cherry-red hair in pigtails and wore a maid's outfit. Her eyes were hidden behind thick glasses that I was amazed she could see out of. Finally came a young boy, with large, bright blue eyes and messy, strawberry blonde hair held out of his face with bobby pins. He had on an oversized plain shirt and plaid pants. He had a straw hat around his neck. "Who's this?" The boy I took to be Finny asked upon seeing me. "This is Alice Moore. She'll be working here from now on." The young boy smiled broadly and hugged me tightly, "It's nice to meet you, Alice! I'm Finny." He released me suddenly and took a step back his face slightly red, "It's nice to meet you, too." I could feel my own cheeks getting hot so I turned to Mey-Rin, "I'm Alice," I offered her my hand, afraid of receiving another bone-crushing hug. She took it sweetly, "I'm Mey-Rin. It's nice to meet you, yes it is." I smiled and felt a hand land firmly on my shoulder. I turned to see Baldroy standing over me, "I'm Bard. It's nice to meet you Alice." I smiled up and him, "It's nice to meet you too." Finny had already gone to the back and grabbed three bags of all my possessions, "Would you like me to show you to the servant's quarters?" "Oh! Finny, don't I can take them, it's ok!" I tried to grab the bags from him, but he held them above his head and out of my reach. "I've got them don't worry."

Finny's POV

I carried Alice's bags following behind Sebastian down to the servant's quarters. "This will be your room." Sebastian opened the door and I walked in and placed the bags onto the freshly made bed. "If I can be of any assistance to you, please let me know." With that Sebastian left. "This will be great, I've never had anyone my age to talk to!" I said excitedly watching Alice, who was looking around the room quietly. It was exactly like the rest of our rooms. It had a bed, a dresser, and a small desk in the corner. Alice walked over to me and fiddled with one of the bags. "I suppose I should unpack." I nodded taking it as my cue to leave. I stopped at the door and watched her open up the bag, "My room's right across the hall if you need me." Alice's blue eyes met mine and she smiled at me, "Thank you, Finny." She said softly. I nodded and stood watching her open the other bags from the doorway. She pulled out a lovely deep blue dress and ran her fingers over the lace color. She placed it into the dresser and then looked at me. "Is there something else, Finny?" I felt my face heat up and shook my head, "Umm… Dinner should be ready soon. I'll come get you when it is. Bye, Alice!" I quickly stepped out of the door and shut it behind me.

"Look at the, Mey-Rin! Our Finny has a crush on Alice." I jumped at the sound of Bard's voice. Mey-Rin giggled along with him, "That's so cute, yes it is." I felt my face heat up again. "I do not!" I walked past them quickly, hoping they wouldn't see the blush I knew was on my face and mumbled, "I have gardening to do." I rushed up the stairs and outside onto the lawn. I went to the gardeners shed and looked for the tools I would need for the evening and stood them up against the side of the shed. I grabbed the shears and started toward the rose garden, smiling as the sun kissed my skin warmly.

Alice's POV

I finished unpacking quickly and decided to go explore the manor. I pulled open my door and jumped back startled to see Mey-Rin on the other side of the door. "Oh! I'm terribly sorry, I am. I come to see if you needed help unpacking." I smiled and put my hand over my pounding heart, "It's perfectly fine. I actually just finished unpacking. I was going to go explore the manor." Mey-Rin smiled broadly at me, "Would you like me to take you on a tour? It could be fun." I smiled at her and nodded, "That would be great." I followed Mey-Rin about the castle, careful not to touch anything, afraid of breaking something or that the new gift Sebastian had revealed to me would creep up. Mey-Rin talked about which rooms were which and where I would be working as a maid. I looked out the window and stopped, "Is that the garden?" Mey-Rin stopped and looked back at me then came to look out the window. "Yes, that's the rose garden. Look, there's Finny!" Sure enough the blonde boy was down below trimming the roses "They're beautiful." I touched the glass with my fingertips and my mind burst into flames. I could hear a child calling out for his parents as smoke filled my mind along with the flames licking at my skin. I pulled my hand away as if I really had been burned and heard myself cry out.

"Alice! Are you alright?" I looked to Mey-Rin and looked around the corridor we had been walking down. There was no smoke, no flames, and no boy it had all been a memory. I nodded, "It was nothing. I'm fine." I held my hands together and looked a deep breath. "Alright then, you're sure?" I nodded and forced a smile, "Please, continue the tour." Mey-Rin smiled and continued chatting about the manor. We continued the tour until dinner and Mey-Rin led me down to the dining hall. "Alice! There you are! I was looking for you!" My eyes landed on Finny and I remembered his promise to come and fetch me when dinner was ready. "Oh, I'm so sorry, I was exploring the manor with Mey-Rin. It's much bigger than I thought. If it wasn't for her I probably would have been hopelessly lost." I beamed up at the older girl. Finny grabbed my wrist gently and tugged on my to follow him, "Sit by me, Alice!" I giggle and followed him to the table and took a placed next to him and across from Baldroy. I smiled at him and he gave me one in return. Bard then smiled in Finny's direction and snickered. "What's so funny?" I asked and he shook his head, "Nothing." I looked out of the corner of my eye at Finny, who had turned pink. "Really though, what is it?" Mey-Rin opened her mouth to reply when the door to the dining room opened abruptly. We all looked to see Sebastian walk in. "Sebastian!" Mey-Rin gushed and I felt a small giggle escape my lips. Obviously Mey-Rin had feelings for the butler in black.

Sebastian's presence filled the room in a way that no one else could do. "Tomorrow we will all be attending a ball at four O'clock. It's a costume party at the Trancy Manor." All of the other servants erupted into cheers of excitement. "A ball?" Sebastian gave a half smile and nodded, "Yes, Alice a ball. You all must wear a costume if you wish to attend." I nodded and turned to listen to the excitable conversation of what costumes they would wear. "Do you want to do a group costume with us?" I looked up and shook my head, "I don't think I'm going to go to the ball." Mey-Rin was the first to reply, "Of course you are! It's going to be fun. Don't even try to argue, Alice" I watched her carefully and finally nodded, "Okay, I'll go, but I'll make my own costume if that's alright. Group costumes don't appeal to me." I smiled sheepishly at the group in front of me. The nodded and I smiled as they went back to talk of the theme they had picked. I ran my fingers through the loose strands of hair, this was going to be an interesting experience.


	4. Chapter 4

Alice's POV

I sat between Mey-Rin and Bard on the front seat of the Phantomhive carriage reading a book. "What are you reading?" Mey-Rin asked as Finny continued to sing that we were going to a ball. I looked up and her, "_A Tale of Two Cities_. It's by Charles Dickans." I smiled as I continued to read. I could hear the voices of the other servants talking over me as I continued to read to myself. I finished the chapter I'd been stuck on for a few days and turned to Mey-Rin. "So what is the young master like?" I asked curiously. The three servants gasped and looked over to me, "You still haven't met him?" Bard asked, his cigarette hanging out of his mouth to the point where I was worried it would fall out. I shook my head frowning. Smiles formed on their faces and I waited for one of them to offer the information I felt I needed. Finny was the first one to speak up, "Oh, you'll love the young master! He's great!" Bard nodded in agreement, "He changed our lives. We'd do anything for the young master." "We all love him. He's an amazing person, yes he is." I nodded and contemplated the words of admiration they all had expressed for the young boy I had yet to meet.

We soon pulled up outside of the Trancy household and Sebastian opened the door to the carriage. He closed it behind a young boy around the age of my sister Anna. He had scruffy black hair and wore a lovely blue coat. He turned to face the servants and I let out a small gasp. One of his eye was covered with a patch, the other was a crystal blue. "Who is she?" He asked not rudely, but concerned. Sebastian bowed slightly to him, "I'm sorry, my lord. I forgot to introduce you to our new maid, Alice Moore." I waved sheepishly and fought the urge to hide behind Bard, who sat closer to the young master's gaze. He shot a shocked look at Sebastian and then turned back to me, "It's nice to meet you. Welcome to the Phantomhive staff." "We'll see you inside! Us Servants need to go in through the back entrance. You'll love our costumes!" Bard said excitedly as he pulled away, leaving the young master and Sebastian at the door.

Finny's POV

I changed into my costume for the ball and a thought popped into my mind. "Hey, Bard?" I asked tugging on the red tunic and turning to the older boy. "What is it Finny?" He didn't look at me as he pulled on his shoes. "Do you know what Alice decided to be?" He looked up at me and smirked, "Not a clue. You didn't ask her?" I shook my head as a knock erupted at our door. I went and opened it and Mey-Rin skipped in, "Are you ready? The master is sure to love our costumes!" I looked her over and smiled, "You look great, Mey-Rin!" She smiled at me, but then it faded quickly, "Finny, your head piece is crooked." She reached over and fixed it, "Mey-Rin, do you know what Alice is going to be?" I asked as she released me. "Of course I do! She looks lovely, yes she does." Silence filled the space between us for a moment before Bard finally asked, "Well what is she?" Mey-Rin shook her head at us, "I can't tell you. She asked me not to." I frowned, "Why?" Mey-Rin shrugged and took mine and Bard's hands, "Let's go it's about to start." She dragged us up the stairs and into the main room.

"Young Master!" The young master turned to us. He was dressed as a pirate. "We're the creatures from Journey to the West. What do you think?" Bard informed him "We even made a costume for you!" I smiled as we held up the costume to him. He looked it over for a moment and shook his head, "Not going to happen." "What about just part of it?" I asked, but he still refused. "Where is the new maid? I thought she would be with you lot." I looked to Mey-Rin who was the last person who'd seen her. She scanned the room and then her eyes landed on something and she smiled brightly, "There she is!" I looked over and felt my face heat up. Alice stood across the room with a glass in her hand sipping at her drink looking uncomfortable. She had her long, white hair in loose curls and her a black tiara sat on top of her head. She had on a midnight blue, floor length dress. It had one shoulder and a slit up the right side just past her hip. Mey-Rin called to her and waved signaling her to come over to us. She smiled and complied. "What are you supposed to be, Alice?" I asked as she approached us. She smiled as she reached us, "The Greek goddess Selene, goddess of the moon." Once she answered me Mey-Rin started to speak. "Look at them." We turned to see three boys darting around cleaning up messes and replacing food. "Do you think we should help? We are servants after all." I asked. Bard nodded, "Let's show them what Phantomhive servants are made of!" We all nodded and started off. "Guys, I don't think that's a-"

Alice's POV

I didn't have time to finish my sentence before everything went wrong. I watched helplessly as Bard broke the table that held to the food, Finny dropped all of the wine, and Mey-Rin dropped the dishes. I covered my eyes and waited for the crash that never came. When I opened my eyes I saw the three young boys from earlier had repaired everything and caught the plates. I watched wide-eyed as everything fell back into place perfectly. "Who are these boys?" I asked to no one in particular. The boy who had fixed the table caught my eye and held contact for a moment. A slight smirked played on his lips and he winked at me before returning to his brothers and began whispering to them. I felt my face heat up and I turned back to my fellow Phantomhive servants. "Alice, your face is all red." Finny observed. I took a deep breath and hoped that my color would return. I felt it return to normal and smiled, "It's nothing. I was just worried about you all." Mey-Rin made a noise in the back of her and pointed to the dance floor where the young master was dancing. "The young master is actually dancing." I looked to Bard who sounded so surprised. Was it really so unusual for a young lord to dance at a ball?

"Alice?" I turned to Finny, whose face was slightly pink. "Yes, Finny?" I took a step toward him, but someone caught my arm. I turned to see the boy from earlier. He took my hand and led me onto the dance floor without a word. I turned to look back at Finny who looked confused and sad as I was pulled into the dance by this strange boy. I felt his hand claim my waist and I placed my hand on his shoulder. He led me about flawlessly. His plum colored hair was parted to the left and his eyes were even redder than Sebastian's. He leaned down next to my face and I held my breath, "You look lovely, Alice." I met his eyes and felt him pull me a tad closer, "How do you know my name?" He smiled down at me, but didn't answer instead he leaned down again and whispered, "My name is Cantebury." He led me around the dance floor and then spun me into one of his brothers. He was identical to Cantebury in every way except the part in his hair, it was to the right. He smirked down at me and leaned into me as his brother had done, "I'm Timber." With that he left me with the final brother, his hair was parted in the middle. He danced with me for a moment then leaned in, "I am Thompson. Now back to Cantebury" The boy who had identified himself as Thompson spun me out and I tripped over my feet and fell into Cantebury.

Finny's POV

I watched as Alice was spun to and fro by the Trancy servants and frowned. I grabbed Mey-Rin's and Bard's hands and pulled them onto the dance floor behind me, "We should dance too!" I switched partners as often as possible, slowly advancing to where Alice was with one of the servants. When I finally reached her I released my partner who left me alone in the middle of the floor. Her eyes met mine and she looked surprised, "Finny?" I looked to the boy who looked about my age and nodded to him, "Do you mind?" He looked to me and nodded back releasing Alice from his grip. Before leaving us he leaned down and whispered in her ear causing her to turn red. I took her hand and placed the other on her waist carefully and smiled down at her, "What did he say to you?" She shook her head, "It was nothing." Suddenly the music stopped. I reluctantly released Alice and turned to see what everyone was looking at. The Trancy maid was dressed in a revealing dress and sat behind an instrument I'd never seen before. I felt myself turn pink looking at her. I turned to look at Alice when the music started playing. A few people started to cry out in pain and I didn't understand what was happening until it was too late.


	5. Chapter 5

Alice's POV

I covered my ears and fell to my knees from the pain. I could hear everyone screaming. I felt tears sting my eyes as the music continues to invade my ears. I felt a stab in the side of my neck and the music stopped for a moment in my mind. I pulled myself up and looked around in confusion. The music continued to play, but it didn't bother me anymore. I watched as the other Phantomhive servants stood back to back fighting the guests, whose eyes glowed. "What's happening?" I backed up and ran into something hard. I turned to see one of the guests with a knife in his hand. I screamed and covered my face in terror as his arm came down. I waited for the pain, but in its place came a crash. I opened my eyes and he was on the floor, unconscious. A bust of Alois Tracey had been thrown across the room and landed on him. I looked around and saw Finny watching me from across the room. Had Finny thrown that from all the way over there? The other two were shooting at the guests, knocking objects out of their hands as Finny threw objects that had to weigh at least three times his own weight at them. I backed into a corner and watched the scene play out before me. Who were these people I had come to live with?

The fight continues as the music played on. I watched my fellow servants fight them off as I stood helplessly in the corner like a child. What could I do? I wasn't even sure how they were doing what they were. They had a few others at their side fighting along with them, but it was clear they were being overpowered. Suddenly, the music changed. A beautiful melody started to play along with the instrument that had caused so much trouble. The guests all stopped and the glow started to fade from their eyes. I cautiously walked out and looked up with the rest of the guests. Sebastian was playing along with the instrument. We all watched in awe at how well the music of the two musicians complimented one another. When the music stopped there was a terrible crash behind us, but everyone clapped for Sebastian and simply ignored it. The ball resumed as if the interruption hadn't occurred at all. I sat at a table in the corner with my fellow Phantomhive servants and talked quietly. I wanted desperately to ask what had happened, but I didn't have the nerve.

I felt a light tap on my shoulder and turned to see the plum haired Cantebury standing behind me. He had a hand extended to me and a faint smile on his face. I smiled at him and started to take his hand, but stopped short, "I'm sorry, but I think I owe someone else a dance." His face showed obvious surprise as he closed his palm. I turned away from him and smiled at the young blonde next to me, "Finny?" He looked even more shocked than Cantebury had. Slowly a smile grew on his face and he took my hand and pulled me onto the dance floor shouting happily.

Bard's POV

I watched as Finny and Alice danced close together and smiled to myself. "They're cute, aren't they?" I asked Mey-Rin. She had a huge smile on her face as she watched them too. "Do you really think Finny fancies her?" I shrugged, "He likes her alright, but we'll have to see." I looked past Alice and Finny to see the triplets standing together whispering and watching the happy pair dancing and laughing. The three plum haired boys didn't look happy at all. I looked to Mey-Rin and nodded in their direction, "Look at them." She did as I instructed and frowned slightly, "What do you think they're talking about?" I shook my head, "I don't know, but whatever it is, I bet it has to do with Alice turning down one of them to dance with our Finny." We watched them for a moment and then I turned to Mey-Rin, "Do you want to dance?" She looked to me in surprise then nodded and took my hand.

Finny's POV

I danced with Alice, careful about how tightly I held her. We talked as we danced and laughed lightly. "You look beautiful tonight, Alice." I said as we continued to dance. She blushed slightly and our eyes met for a moment before she looked away. She opened her mouth to say something, but was cut off by Sebastian appearing beside us, "The young master wishes to take his leave." Alice pulled herself out of my grasp, but stayed close enough for our shoulders to touch. "Okay, where is he?" She looked around, as did I, but the young master was nowhere to be seen. After further inspection, Mey-Rin and Bard weren't there either. "Everyone is already in the carriage, we were waiting for you two." I felt my own face heat up, as Alice turned red. Had we really been dancing for that long? It hadn't felt like that long. We followed Sebastian out to the carriage. "There you two are! We thought you'd run off." I helped Alice onto the carriage sat her between Bard and myself. We all drove back to the manor quietly. About half way there I felt a light weight on my shoulder. I looked over to see Alice had fallen asleep on my shoulder. I smiled and wrapped my arm around her carefully. I saw Bard smirk and I frowned at him. "What? I don't want her to fall off." I stated honestly. He just chuckled.

We soon arrived at the manor and I picked Alice up in my arms and followed Mey-Rin and Bard down to the servant's quarters. Mey-Rin opened Alice's door for me and I laid her down on her bed. I gently took the crown off of her head and pulled the sheets up over her. I put the tiara on dresser and smiled at her before whispering, "Good night, Alice." Then shut the door behind me and headed off to my own room across the hall.


	6. Chapter 6

Alice's POV I felt the warm sun dancing across my skin through the window and pulled the sheets over my face, not ready to get up just yet. After a moment the realization of where I was hit me and I sat up. Memories of the night before came back to me, but I couldn't recall how I'd gotten back to my room. I pushed myself out of bed and realized I was still in my dress from the night before. I quickly changed into my navy blue maids outfit and walked down the hall to where the servants dined. I took my seat next to Finny and ate the food Bard had prepared. "How was your second night in the manor?" Mey-Rin asked as she sat across from me. I smiled at her, "It was fine. I don't really remember coming back to the manor last night though." I answered truthfully. Bard and Mey-Rin both had suspicious smiles plastered on their faces and they looked to Finny, "Finny carried you in. You fell asleep in the carriage on the way here." A barely noticeable blush was spread across Finny's cheeks. I put my hand on top of his causing him to look up at me. "Thank you." He nodded and his cheeks turned even redder making me giggle.  
>After breakfast Mey-Rin started mumbling about having to go do something with the bed sheets and Finny jumped up and ran excitedly outside. I watched him go and heard a chuckle come from the cook. "What is it, Bard?" He shook his head, "Nothing. So what are you supposed to be doing today, Alice?" I thought about it for a moment and shook my head, "I'm not sure… perhaps I should go find Sebastian and ask him." "Want some help finding him? He's probably in the young master's office. I could take you if you want." I smiled at him and nodded, "Could you? I don't want to put you out." He waved off my concerns and stood up, "I have a while before I have to make the master's lunch. It's not a problem." I smiled and followed Bard around the large manor. I could find my way around the small servant's quarters, but despite Mey-Rin's tour on my first day I was still prone to getting lost in the larger portion of the mansion. Bard led me down hallways and made lefts and rights around the large estate. "So, what do you think of the manor so far?" I shrugged, "It's beautiful." I said looking around. "What about Finny? What do you think about him?" I watched Bard for a moment before answering, "I like him. He's very sweet." Bard nodded, "That triplet from the Trancy manor seemed to fancy you. He didn't seem very happy that you turned him down for Finny." I shrugged, "I had told Finny I would dance with him. It had been cut short when…" my voice trailed off unsure of what exactly had happened. "I know what you mean." Bard stopped in front of the double doors. "Here's the master's study." He knocked hard and Sebastian opened the door immediately. "Bard… Alice… can I help you?" I nodded, "What exactly am I supposed to be doing?" Sebastian had a faint smile on his face, "Of course, let me take you to where you'll be working this morning."<br>I followed Sebastian down the halls with Bard close behind me. We reached another set of doors. Behind it was a small sowing machine and rolls of fabric everywhere. "You were a seamstress, correct?" "Yes, I was." "We need you to repair some clothes, you'll find them in the basket over there and then we have a special request from the young master. He would like you to make baby clothes to fit a newborn infant." I looked up at him in confusion, "Who's having a baby?" I asked confused. Sebastian smiled politely down at me, "The master's friend who has recently passed. His wife is pregnant. She's due very soon." I nodded and walked over to the sowing machine. Bard sat next to me and talked about what he could make for the master's midmorning meal. After I finished repairing the few things from the basket and folded them I looked up at him. "Bard, I have a question." He stopped talking and looked at me, waiting for me to continue. "Last night… You all… I mean, what you all did..." Bard held his hand up to silence me. "Listen, Alice. There's a reason we're all here. It's to protect the manor. Sebastian picked us all for a reason. We were just doing our jobs." I searched his eyes for a moment, "You all have gifts…" He nodded. I contemplated for a moment then opened my mouth to ask the questions that had plagued my mind since I'd seen them fight. Before I could, Bard stood up, "I need to go start Lunch. Will you be able to find your way back to the servant's dining room alone?" I nodded without hesitation and he left me alone. I began working on the baby clothes that had been requested by the young master and smiled as I finished a tiny jacket. It was small and brown with buttons along one side. I placed it to the side and started working on a pair of pants, unsure of that the gender of the child actually was. I continued making different unisex clothing items for the baby that was supposed to be born soon. I examined the pieces I'd completed to see what was left to be done when I heard a knock on the door. I looked away from the blue dress I'd been examining to see Finny standing in the doorway. "Bard said to come get you. It's time for lunch." I looked at the pocket watch I'd had on the table and was shocked to see that it had been almost three hours since Bard had taken his leave of me. "Oh, I must have lost track of time." I got up, still holding the small dress. "What's that?" Finny walked over to get a better look at the small item in my hand and I smiled, "It's a baby dress. I'm making it for one of the young master's friend. His wife is having a baby." Finny smiled broadly, "A baby! How adorable!" I smiled, "Yeah, I remember when my brother and Nathaniel were this small. They were so cute." Finny and I stood in silence staring at the small dress still in my hand. Finally I put it back onto the desk I'd been working at and took Finny's hand, "Come on, Bard will be looking for us." 


	7. Chapter 7

Finny's POV

The rest of the day had passed quickly, I pulled on an oversized night shirt over my pajama pants. I put my hairclips on the table allowing my hair to fall into my face. I yawned and rubbed my eyes, it was time for bed. I pulled the sheets over my body and snugged underneath, falling into a peaceful sleep. After what seemed like no time at all I was awoken by the sound from the other room. I slipped out of the bed and stumbled sleepily to the door through the dark. I followed the noise to the other side of the hall. It was coming from Alice's room. The sound was clearer now, it was soft sobs. Feeling much more awake now, I pushed the door open slightly and looked in. It was dark, but I could faintly make out Alice's silhouette. "Alice?" I whispered and saw her jump. "Who is it?" She asked, her voice hoarse from crying. My heart broke a little hearing her sound so upset. "It's me, Finny." She wiped her eyes and lit the candle next to her bed. The small flame lit the room just enough for me to see her. She had on a lavender nightgown and a tear streaked face. I felt mine heat up as I sat next to her. She wouldn't look up at me as we sat in silence. Finally I took her hand in mine and looked she turned to me quickly, "Alice, what's wrong?" She looked down and examined our hands, "I couldn't sleep and I just started thinking and… How could I just leave them?" The last part was barely above a whisper, but it was enough for me to hear. I watched as tears began to spill out of her eyes again, "Alice, please don't cry. It'll be ok."

Alice's POV

I choked back a sob and Finny enveloped me in a tight hug, "Finny, you're crushing me." I gasped as the tightness of the hug became unbearable. He released me immediately, "Oh! Alice, I'm so sorry!" He apologized quietly, "I didn't hurt you did I?" I shook my head and the frown he'd had was replaced with his usual smile. "Good." I looked down and noticed something on Finny's arm. My own troubles forgotten. I grabbed his wrist gently and turned his arm over, "Finny, what's on your arm?" I pulled his sleeve just above his elbow to reveal tiny white marks along the inside of his elbow. He flinched and pulled his arm away. "It's a long story." The happy boy I usually saw walking around the manor was gone. I examined the broken child in front of me and decided I never wanted to see Finny like this again.

I sat cross-legged on my bed and faced the young gardener, "What's your story, Finny?" He looked down, taking a deep breath. "I was taken from my family, I don't really remember them. Some of my friends and I were all taken, but it was okay because we were all together. Then we were forced to kill each other. I was a test subject and that's why I'm so strong." He had a ghost of a smile on his face, but the pain of the memories was evident in his eyes. "So that's why Sebastian brought you here… It's because you're so strong…" He nodded and his smile returned, "It's your turn, Alice." I smiled at the innocent boy with such a tragic past. I had no other choice, but to tell him my story. "Well, I have two brothers and a sister. My father never believed I was his because I never looked anything like he did. He and my uncle would beat me. One day, about a year ago, he went to my uncle's house on some business and never came back. My older brother went to go see what had happened. They were killed. My father, uncle, aunt, three of my cousins. The only one left was Nathaniel, he just turned two…" I smiled at the thought of my loveable, happy cousin, "Ever since they were murdered, my brother has taken over as head of the house. He works a lot, my mom started to sell herself. With six people in our house things were hard." I stopped debating on telling him what my gift was. "They beat you?" Finny's eyes were wide in disbelief. I nodded. "They experimented on you!" I said, shocked at Finny's complete horror. His life had been so much worse than mine had and yet he was the one who felt bad for me.

Finny's POV

"They were your family." With those words, Alice fell quiet. "I suppose we've both had a troubled life." She said after a few moments. I nodded and watched as the light from the candle danced across her pale skin in the darkness. It illuminated her white hair like a halo and I smiled. "Finny, what are you staring at?" I felt a blush creep across my face as Alice stared at me with those blue eyes. I looked away, "Nothing. It… it was nothing." She giggled at me and leaned back against the wall I pulled myself father up on her bed and did the same. "That's why you like being outside so much, right?" Alice asked suddenly. I nodded, "Yeah. Alice, can I ask you a question?" "What is it?" She asked. "What was your older brother like?" She rested her head on my shoulder and smiled to herself, "Patrick is a good brother. He was protective and smart and hardworking. He can be strict, but he means well." I yawned and rested my head against hers, "Did he ever hit you?" She nodded once, "He has quite a temper." I sleepily put my arms around her, careful not to hurt her, "No one is ever going to hurt you again." I whispered to her.


	8. Chapter 8

Alice's POV

I woke up to the sound of whispers. I opened my eyes slowly to see Mey-Rin and Bard whispering back and forth. "What are you two doing?" I asked starting to sit up, but failing. I looked down to see what was stopping me and found a pair of arms around my waist. Remembering how Finny had come into my room the night before I realized we must had fallen asleep and now found ourselves in quite an awkward position. "We could as you the same thing." Bard said chuckling at us. I slipped out of Finny's strong arms and went to place a hand on his shoulder, but stopped short. I turned to the two others and pointed to the door, "Both of you get out and not a word about this to Finny." I put as much force into the words as I could without being loud. The two servant's threw their hands up in surrender, still laughing quietly to themselves and walked out. As soon as the door shut I placed my hand softly on Finny's shoulder, "Finny, you need to wake up now." His blue eyes fluttered open and he smiled up at me, "Good morning, Alice." Suddenly his smile disappeared and was replaced with a look of pure embarrassment, "Alice! Oh, no! I'm so sorry! I must have fallen asleep." I smiled and hugged the flustered boy, "Finny, it's fine. Don't be sorry."

I rested my hand on his shoulder as the scene before me changed. I was lying on a table, actually I was strapped to the table. I wiggled and tried to break free as the leather straps dug into my wrists, ankles, and stomach. I felt pain as a needle was injected into my arm. It increased as I struggled and finally the leather broke and I ran. I could feel my heart pounding hard in my chest. I looked behind me to see if anyone was coming after me and ran into something hard. I pulled my hand away from Finny and our eyes met. His eyes suddenly filled with concern, "Alice what's wrong?" I shook my head and hugged him tightly, "Finny, I am so sorry you had to go through that." He hugged me back gingerly, "Alice, what are you talking about?" I looked down, "Everyone here has a gift right?" I asked, not sure how to explain myself. I looked up to see Finny nod slightly, "Well, I do too… I can see people's history through their things." Finny cocked his head to the side, "Really?" I nodded and he smiled, "That's amazing!" I felt myself blush and there was a knock on the door, "Alice, Finny! Get a move on will ya? There's stuff to be done!" I shut my eyes tightly as Bard's voice echoed through the door. Finny's face turned bright red and he slipped off the bed and started toward the door, "I'll see you later, Alice!" He called before shutting the door, leaving me to get dressed to start the day.

Bard's POV

Finny and Alice came into the servant's dining hall together and I couldn't help but smirk at them. "How was your night?" I asked watching as the two teen's faces lit up. I laughed aloud and took a seat across from Alice. "Anything interesting happen?" Finny shifted uncomfortably in his seat without looking at me. "We talked." Alice said sipping her glass of water. I bumped Mey-Rin with my elbow suggestively, "Must have been a very personal conversation to need to be had while everyone else was asleep." Alice put her glass down and looked me in the eye for the first time today, "It was." The tone in her voice told me to drop it, but she'd peaked my curiosity, "Well, we're all friends here, right? What was it about?" Alice sighed in annoyance and I could tell she was angry with me, "It was about why Finny is so strong and how my father and uncle would beat me." Alice stood up and stormed out of the room.

We all sat in silence and I looked over at Finny who was staring at the door where Alice had just gone through. "Bard, go after her." I looked in disbelief to Mey-Rin, "Me? Why?" "Because you're the one who was teasing her." I huffed, "She doesn't have to be so bloody sensitive." I got up and walked back down to Alice's room and knocked once, "Alice?" "Go away, Bard." "Alice, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you angry." The door swung open and Alice stood directly in front of me. Despite her being at least six inches shorter than me, she looked intimidating. "Yes you did. You saw how uncomfortable you were making poor Finny and you did it anyways. You did it on purpose, now go away." I put my hand on the door to stop her from shutting it and looked down at her, "So this is about Finny."

Alice's POV

I met Bard's blue eyes and sighed in frustration and leaned against the doorframe, "Of course it's about Finny." I said it more to myself than Bard. I looked down and shook my head, I couldn't start developing feelings for Finny or anyone for that matter. I was here to do a job. Bard placed his hand under my chin and tilted my face up to face him, "You like Finny, don't you?" He had phrased it as a question, but his eyes said that they already knew the answer. I opened my mouth to answer, but was cut off by someone clearing their throat. Bard pulled away from me quickly as we looked up to see Sebastian standing over us. "Mister Sebastian." We both said. I shrunk back into the doorframe I had been leaning against. "It wasn't what you think," I started but he waved off my protests. "It's none of my concern what you were doing, but there is work to be done. The young master and I will be heading out for the day. We should be back by dinner, but do try to avoid blowing anything up while we are away." He looked pointedly at Bard. We both mumbled our responses and then he turned and left us alone again in the hall. "Tell him." Bard said suddenly. I looked up at him in surprise, "Excuse me?"

Bard shrugged at me, "Tell Finny how you feel." I blinked at the older man a few times, then shook my head. "I hardly know him." I protested, still I felt my face heat up. Brad smirked down at me, "You know you like Finny, Alice." I slapped my hand over his mouth and looked down the hall. "Not so loud, Baldroy." I could feel his lips forming into a smile under my hand as he grabbed my wrist and lowered my hand from his face. "He likes you too." I felt my face heat up even more and my face had to be the same shade of red as a tomato. "Alice? Bard?" As if on cue, the innocent voice of Finny echoed through the halls. The blonde can down the hall and walked up to us, "Mey-Rin told me to come see if you guys were okay." He looked to me and I nodded looking to Bard and playfully hit his arm, "Yeah, we're okay." Bard smiled and looked between Finny and I and ruffled our hair, "I got to go start on lunch, I'll see you both later. Don't forget to get your work done, or Mister Sebastian will be mad." We both nodded and then we were left alone in the hall.

Finny's POV

I looked over Alice and took her hand gently, "Are you sure that you're okay, Alice? You seemed pretty upset with Bard earlier." She smiled and squeezed my hand, "I'm fine. I have to go finish the clothes for the baby, but after would it be okay if I came to see the garden?" I felt my face heat up and my eyes shot to her stomach, "The baby?" "Master Ciel's friend is having a baby. I told you that when we were in the sowing room yesterday. Don't you remember the blue dress?" I nodded quickly hoping she hadn't seen where I had been looking. How could I think Alice was having a baby? I'd see people who were having babies and Alice was much too tiny to have a baby in her tummy. She started to walk past me but stopped and was staring at my hair. "What is it?" Her face got very close to me and stood on her tippy-toes and fixed one of the pins in my hair. "Bard must have knocked it loose when he tussled your hair." She giggled. I blushed at how close our faced were but Alice just smiled. "I'll see you later, Finny." She placed a quick kiss on my cheek and then rushed off down the hall leaving me staring after her.


	9. Chapter 9

Alice's POV

What on earth did I do that for? I thought to myself as I shut the door to the sowing room tightly behind me. I placed my face in my hands and shook my head. I pushed the thought aside and started on the remainder of the baby clothes. I quickly finished the last few things and smiled admiring my work. I heard a knock on the door and looked over to see Mey-Rin standing in the doorway. "Can I help you with something?" I asked watching her as she fidgeted around, "Mister Sebastian will not be happy, no he won't. Bard blew up the kitchen again." I cocked my head to the side in confusion, "Bard did what?" "Come see!" She took my hand and dragged me down to the kitchen area. Black smoke was filling the hallway and it was impossible to see what was going on in the kitchen. I felt my heart sink as panic rushed over me, "Bard!" I ran into the smoke that had started to clear out of an open window. Bard was standing in the middle of the room coughing, covered from head to toe in ashes. "Bard! Are you okay? What happened?" Mey-Rin stood with her hands on her hips looking disappointed, "He tried to cook with dynamite again." I watched as the chief smiled sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head, "What does she mean again?" "It makes the cooking go faster." I looked up at him and shook my head in disbelief, why would he want to rush something he had to eat? "Why don't you go clean yourself up? I'll take care of the kitchen." I looked around at the ash covered kitchen and frowned. "You sure, Alice?" I nodded and placed my hand on his back to push him out of the kitchen.

As I touched Bard's once white chief coat, the scene before me changed. Shots were being fired and orders shouted from all directions. I watched the guy next to me fall and I felt an overwhelming sense of sorrow. I called for help, but I was only answered by the sound of gunshots. "Hello?" I looked up at a very familiar voice and held a gun up to Sebastian. I dropped my hand and Bard and Mey-Rin were both staring at me, "Are you alright, Alice?" I couldn't answer, all I could do was stare. Finally I found my voice, "You were a solider. That's why you rush." I said string at him. His eyes widened, "Who told you that?" He wasn't angry, simply surprised.

Bard's POV

I stared down at Alice, but all she did was shake her head and hold up her hand. I shook my head, not understanding what she was trying to say. "No one told me… I saw it." I watched her for a second. So that was her gift. She could see into the past. "So that's it then." She nodded and then shook it off, "Go clean yourself up, Bard. I'll get lunch ready." I watched her go in through the cupboards pulling out various things. She stopped suddenly and turned to me and shooed me away with her hand. I did as I was told and began walking back to my room. I washed off the ash from myself and changed. I started walking back to the kitchen, but changed directions suddenly and headed to the garden. It didn't take me long to find Finny cutting the hedges. "Finny, come down here." He climbed down the latter and jumped down next to me, "What is it?" I looked at the younger boy, "I have a question for you." He waited in anticipation, "You do like Alice, don't you?" His smile widened and nodded, "Of course I like Alice. Don't you?" I gave the kid a sympathetic smile, I forget how innocent he is. "That's not what I meant, Finny." He watched me for a second and then it seemed to hit him, "Oh! I- umm…. I have hedges to trim." He turned away and started trimming quickly until the entire tree was void of leaves. When he saw what he'd done he burst into tears and fell to the floor.

"Bard! Finny! I finished- Finny! What's wrong?" Alice came running out and fell to the gardener's side. She took his face in her hands and lifted it up to her. He continued crying and pointed up that the trees, "Sebastian is going to be mad at me! I ruined the hedges." A light smile played on her lips and she wiped away the tears from Finny's eyes with her thumb, "Finny, the leaves were going to fall off soon anyways. It's almost autumn. Sebastian will be okay. It was an accident." I didn't see how ripping all of the leaves off of the hedge could be an accident, but it seemed to calm Finny down. He sniffled once and wiped his eyes, "Do you really think so?" She smiled at him and nodded, "Of course! You just helped speed the process along a little." Finny smiled and pulled Alice into a tight hug. I smiled down at the couple until I noticed Alice had begun to turn slightly bluish. "Finny, I don't think Alice can breathe." Finny immediately let go and Alice's color began to return to normal. "Alice, I'm so sorry!" She smiled at the boy in front of her, "its fine, Finny." They stared onto each other's eyes for a moment then Alice's face turned bright red, "We should get inside. Mey-Rin is waiting for us." She said standing up and brushing herself and then helping up Finny. We walked back inside quietly. Mey-Rin's eyes met mine questioningly and I shook my head. She frowned and we at sat down for lunch.


	10. Chapter 10

Alice's POV

"Alice!" I giggled and looked back at Finny who stood about twenty feet away from me. I placed his hat on my head and stuck my tongue out at him, "If you want your hat back, you have to catch me!" His frown turned into a smile as he started running after me. He was fast I realized as I turned away and started running away. We were both laughing, but the game was short lived as Finny grabbed me around my waist and spun me around. "I got you!" He put me down and I took the hat off and placed it on top of his head, "Okay, you win." He pushed it back so that it hung loosely around his neck and fell into a sitting position on the grass and I fell down next to him. "Why do you wear your hat like that?" I asked and immediately wished I hadn't. "I have a mark on the back of my neck from when I was an experiment." He removed his hat and showed me the tattoo: S-012. I ran my finger over it gently and felt tears begin to form in my eyes, "Oh, Finny…" He turned back to me and a look of pure concern flashed across his face, "Alice, don't cry! Please don't cry!" He wiped my tears away with the back of his hand and hugged me gently.

Finny's POV

I let Alice go and watched her as she took a few deep breaths then smiled at me, wiping away a few stray tears. "I'm sorry." I shook my head and smiled at her, "Don't be sorry, Alice." She smiled at me and I realized exactly how close she was and blushed heavily moving back from her. We laid back on the grass watching the clouds as they rolled by shouting out the different shapes they made and laughing. "Finny, can I ask you something?" I rolled over onto my stomach and Alice did the same so we were facing each other. "Of course, what is it?" Her eyes met mine, "Have you ever been in love?" I thought about it for a moment and nodded, "Once." "What happened?" She asked propping herself up on her elbows. I mimicked her, "She wasn't who I thought she was." Alice smiled sadly at me. "Have you ever been in love?" I asked. She nodded, "Once. It was my brother's best friend. His name was Adam. I was fifteen, but he was in love with someone else." She looked down and then back at me, "I think it was all for the best though." I nodded and smiled, "Me too." We laid like that for a while staring into each other's eyes in comfortable silence.

Suddenly Alice sat up and pulled me up with her. "Finny, I have another question." I waited for her to continue and she looked down, blushing deeply. "Have you ever kissed a girl?" I felt my own face heat up and shook my head. She looked down and then back up to me, "Have you ever kissed a boy?" She shook her head and we sat in a strange silence, not comfortable nor uncomfortable, just staring at each other. Before I knew what was happening, Alice's lips brushed past mine and then stopped just before it could be considered a kiss. I cupped her cheek with my hand like I'd seen Bard do when he kissed some girl at a party and leaned in as gently as possible pressing my lips to hers for a second before pulling away. Both of our faces were bright red as we stared at each other in silence. Did that really just happen? I quickly dropped my hand from her face and looked down. "So it finally happened?" We both looked up to see Bard and Mey-Rin standing a few feet away from us. "We've been trying to get you two together for weeks, yes we have!" Mey-Rin gushed. Their words only causing us to blush deeper. "You saw that?" Alice asked in a quiet voice. They both nodded obviously pleased with themselves.

Alice's POV

Finny stood up and offered me his hand. I took it and pulled myself up next to him. Brushing myself off and then taking his hand. He squeezed it lightly obviously afraid of hurting me and we followed the other servants into the manor, hand in hand. I bumped Finny with my shoulder lightly and giggled when he did it back. I talked with the other servants but as hard as I tried I couldn't shake the feeling of being watched.

Cantebury's POV

"I told you she'd end up with the gardener." Timer commented. "No you didn't." Thompson retorted. I rolled my eyes, "Both of you shut up." I watched as Alice Moore walked away hand in hand with the boy she'd rejected me for a few weeks earlier at the ball. I scowled and turned to my brothers who had been helping me watch her since then. We'd seen them growing closer, but this was unacceptable. "Tonight. We'll have to get her out tonight." The other's nodded and we slipped back into the woods surrounding the Phantomhive estate.


	11. Chapter 11

Alice's POV

I kissed Finny's cheek, "Good night, Finny." He kissed my nose and I giggled, "Good night, Alice." We both slipped into our rooms smiling to ourselves. I shut the door behind me and cocked my head to the side; my window was open. "I'm sure I closed th-" I felt an arm wrap around my waist and someone press their hand firmly over my mouth. Frozen with fear, I stood as still as possible. "Hello, Alice." I knew that voice. I couldn't place the face until two people with it appeared in front of me, their faces illuminated by the light of their candles. Cantebury held me close to him as he and his brothers escorted me to the window. I struggled against their inhuman strength to no avail. I brought one hand up to try to pry his hand off my mouth to scream and the scene before me changed.

Fire. The flames of an entire villiage licking the sky as it burned. Almost everyone was dead, you could hear the screams of the others who were dying. A woman stood behind me and the two of the other triplets. She was beautiful, terrifying, but beautiful. Beside her stood a little boy who seemed to glow happiness. I could feel the longing and desire for something that this little boy had building in my chest. I dropped my hand only to find myself in a horse drawn carriage. I'd only been in one once before with Sebastian when he'd taken me from my home. I was alone apart from the person beside me, who I could only assume to me Cantebury, his arm still thrown around me. I pulled away instantly, trying to push myself as far back into the wall of the carriage as possible. "Now, now, Alice. We went through all this trouble to get you. You should play with us." He tilted my face up to meet his eyes and kissed me roughly. I tried to push him off of me, but failed. Am I really this weak? He had a bored expression painted on his face as he looked down at me, "Alice."

Finny's POV

I skipped into the hallway and knocked on Alice's door. I waited for a moment, but got no answer. I frowned slightly. It wasn't like her to leave for breakfast without me. I walked down the hall and into the servant's dining room to find Mey-Rin and Bard chatting happily across the table. Mey-Rin smiled broadly when she saw me come in, but when she realized I was alone her smile faltered, "Where's Alice?" I looked at her blankly for a second, "You haven't seen her either?" They both shook their heads. "You two usually come down here together. Did you two have a fight last night? You've only started dating." I shook my head, "I never fight with Alice. You don't think she's in trouble do you?" A silence fell around us as we all assumed the worst and ran out of the servant's quarters searching for any sign of Alice. We called her name around the manor with no response. "What are you three doing?" We all stopped in our search to see Sebastian watching us from the top of the stairs. "Alice is missing." I said feeling my heart sink as the words left my mouth. "I see… Have you looked everywhere?" We all nodded. He placed his fingertips to his forehead in obvious annoyance, "I think I know where she might have gotten off to. Do you remember the boy at the ball who was dancing with her?" I felt myself grow red, "Yes, I remember." "He was a servant of the Trancy household. He seemed to have taken a special interest in Miss Moore." "You don't think they'd hurt her do you?" Sebastian looked past me to Bard and Mey-Rin. No one seemed to want to answer me and I felt tears begin to sting my eyes before I burst out crying. "It's all my fault! If I wouldn't have asked her to dance, she would have danced with him and they wouldn't have taken her!" I cried until I heard someone scoff. I looked up to see the young master. "Crying isn't going to get Alice back." He walked down the stairs and I stood up and wiped my eyes quickly, "Young master?" "Come on, we need to get my maid back." He walked out the door and a wide smile broke out on Bard's lips, "Come on! Let's show them what Phantomhive servants are made of!" We all ran out the door after the young master.

Bard's POV

We rode quickly toward the Trancy household. No one spoke on the way there. I occasionally shot looks to Finny who looked concerned. He was prepared for the worst. Mey-Rin had my shotgun gripped tightly in one hand and her other placed on Finny's shoulder in a comforting way. I scowled and made the carriage go a little faster. I knew there was something off about those servants, but I never would have thought they would take little Alice. Finny was guilt stricken although we all knew it had nothing to do with him. I sighed as we pulled up outside the manor and we all took a deep breath and jumped out of the carriage and I took my shotgun from Mey-Rin. "Let's go get Alice."

Alice's POV

I was alone. I felt tears streaming down my face and tried to push them away, but more found their way to replace them. Yesterday's dress was torn and dirty, but there was nothing I could do about it. The room I was locked in was a navy bedroom. The triplets came and went, but for the most part it was just me alone here in the dark. Whenever I tried to open the curtains on the window, they'd hit me before closing them again. I suppose Cantebury had gotten what he wanted and now I was simply here because letting me go could cause problems. They would probably just kill me now. It's not as if anyone would know where to begin looking for me. I pulled my knees closer to my chest on the bed where they'd left me and heard a single gunshot ring out. My head shot up. I'd heard that sound before… when I was in Bard's memory. I raced to the window and threw open the curtains, knowing I'd be in trouble if anyone came in. I could see my fellow Phantomhive servants running toward the Trancy manor and felt pure fear coursing through my veins at the sight of Finny. I shut the curtains and sunk to the floor and began to cry. What if they were killed on my behalf? I was dirty now, Finny deserved so much better and yet they risked their lives for me. If only they knew what had happened when we'd arrived…


	12. Chapter 12

Alice's POV

I listened as the battle went on below. It seemed like only a few minutes before I heard footsteps rapidly approaching the door. I braced myself, sure to see one of the triplets, or worse the Earl of Trancy, but when the door flew open a familiar silhouette of a butler stood in the doorway. "Mister Sebastian?"

Sebastian's POV

My eyes searched the room to find the source of the small voice. My eyes landed on a small figure in the corner: Alice. She was slightly bruised here and there and her dress was ripped at the bottom. I watched as tears formed in her eyes as she got up and ran to me, throwing herself into my arms as she started to cry. I held her gingerly and sighed. She could be so much like Finny, so very childish. Then I sensed it. I felt a wave of sympathy for the girl flow through me her innocence was gone. "I hope you will not be as skilled as getting kidnapped as the young master. We've all been very worried about you, Miss. Moore." I said carrying her out of the manor. I slipped past the battle and placed Alice into the carriage across from my young master. "I'll get the others." I said bowing and went off to call for the servants.

Finny's POV

We all ran back to the carriage and started to drive away quickly. I looked to Sebastian who had opted to sit upfront with us, "Where's Alice?" He smiled down at me and motioned to the carriage, "I thought it best to allow her to ride with the young master. She seems to have had a very difficult night." I saw Bard and Mey-Rin exchange glances and I knew that meant something bad had happened that I would probably need explained to me. "Is Alice okay?" I felt tears being to swell into my eyes. Sebastian merely nodded, "Alice will be fine." We pulled up in front of the manor and we jumped out I ran to the side of the carriage and bounced back and forth from one foot to the other, anxious to see Alice. The young master got out first and the Sebastian reached in and picked up Alice lifting her out of the carriage. I felt my heart break slightly. She was bruised and her dress was ripped and slightly grass stained. Her hair was tangled and she slept soundly in Sebastian's arms.

"Let me take her. Please, Mister Sebastian?" I held out my arms and Sebastian laid Alice in them. She relaxed into my chest and I carried her down to the servant's quarters with Bard and Mey-Rin behind me. I placed her in her bed and pushed her hair back out of her face. "Come on, Finny." Bard said, but I shook my head. "Last time I left her alone, she got taken away." I felt a small hand on my shoulder and knew it was Mey-Rin. "Finny, I think we need to talk. You do want to know what Sebastian thinks happened to Alice, don't you?" I looked to them and nodded. Mey-Rin escorted me out of the room and we all piled into my room, shutting the door behind us. They sat me down on my bed and we stared at one another in silence. "So what happened?" Mey-Rin and Bard shared a glance as if to try and decide what to tell me and who it should be. Finally Bard took a deep breath.

Bard's POV

Finny's face was bright red and covered in tears when we finished telling him what happened to Alice. "Why would someone do that?" He cried. I shooed Mey-Rin out of the room and put my arm around Finny. We'd of course seen the emotional teenager cry plenty of times, but this was something much more serious than Finny killing the yard with herbicide or breaking plates. The girl he was falling in love with was going through something the poor kid hadn't even heard of before a few minutes ago. This hurt for him was far bigger than a scolding from Sebastian, he was broken hearted. "Finny, she's going to be okay. She's back with us now." He rubbed his eyes, "They hurt her… she hadn't even been kissed until yesterday and now…" He burst out crying again. I let go of him and stood up, "Finny, you need to stop crying. Alice needs you and she's going to get the wrong impression if you burst out crying when you see her." He nodded and I started to leave, thinking Finny might need a few minutes to himself when he called me back, "Bard? Do you think it's my fault she got taken away in the first place?" I turned to him and shook my head, "No, Finny. It's not your fault. Go see Alice. I think she's waking up." He nodded, but didn't move as I closed the door. I ran my hand through my hair and looked to Mey-Rin, "How is he?" "He'll be okay once he sees her. How's she?" Mey-Rin had a ghost of a smile on her face, "She'll be doing better once she sees Finny."

Alice's POV

Mey-Rin had helped me change, careful of my bruises and I sat on my bed thinking about the horrible night I'd spent in the Trancy manor when there was a knock on the door. I turned to look at it as it opened and in popped the young blonde. I looked away quickly, unable to meet his pure, innocent eyes. He sat next to me and placed his hand on top of mine. We laced our fingers together and we both watched out hands in silence. "Bard and Mey-Rin explained what happened." I closed my eyes and felt tears slip out. He knew. He knew that my innocence had been stained black at the hands of a boy I cared nothing for. "You're going to leave now right? It's not proper to be with someone who… someone like me." Finny placed his hand under my chin and pulled my face up gently so our eyes met. He was crying too as he shook his head, "It wasn't your fault, Alice. I'm not going anywhere." He hugged me tightly and I rested my head in his chest. We laid back on the bed together and cried for a long time until I felt myself slip into a tear stained blackness.


	13. Chapter 13

Bard's POV

I shut Alice's door quietly and sighed, "Well they fell asleep, so that's a good sign I guess." Mey-Rin nodded and peeked into the room, "They are adorable. Poor Alice." I nodded, "They'll be okay." I said lighting my cigarette. "Finny loves that little girl." Mey-Rin's eyes widened, "Did he tell you that?" I shook my head and opened the door just enough that we could both see in. "Look at them and tell me they aren't in love." Alice and Finny were wrapped in each other's arms sound asleep. Despite their tear stained faces, they both had on a small smile. Finny held Alice as close to him as possible. Mey-Rin's smile widened as the door shut, "So do you think he'll marry her?" I blew a puff of smoke away from her and shrugged, "I don't know this is Finny we're talking about. I don't think the thought will cross his mind. Besides, they're only kids." Mey-Rin shook her head, "Plenty of young people are getting married at Alice and Finny's age. Especially with what just happened to Alice…. She could end up-" "I would appreciate it if you two stopped gossiping like school girls and got back to work." We both jumped at Sebastian's voice. "Mister Sebastian! We were just talking about… well what happens if Alice is.. umm…" I exchanged a look with Mey-Rin on exactly how to ask the question. Luckily Sebastian caught on and sighed, "I don't think that will be a problem, but if it is that will be up to Miss. Moore to decide what to do."

Finny's POV

I woke up and looked down at the small girl in my arms and smiled. She looked so innocent and beautiful as she slept. Her eyes fluttered open and her blue eyes met my turquoise ones. "You have no idea how amazing it is to open my eyes and see you." Her voice was barely above a whisper, but it was enough for me to hear. I pushed a stray hair out of her face and kissed her forehead. "I think I have an idea." She giggled and snuggled closer to me. It was starting to get dark outside and I knew it was about time for dinner. I pulled myself up with Alice and smiled at her as we got out of the bed, "It's just about dinner time, Alice." I said smoothing out her hair. She nodded and then stopped, "Finny, wait. You're missing something." She let go of my hand and looked around the bed for a moment. When she finally found it her face lit up and she held up a single red Bobbie pin. "It must have fallen out when you were asleep." She smiled and slipped it into my hair, pulling my hair out of my face. I felt a blush creep onto my cheeks and she giggle, "Come on, Finny!" Our fingers laced together and we ran down the hall toward the dining room.

I entered the dining hall with Alice leading the way. Bard and Mey-Rin looked up at our arrival and smiled, "Well I'm glad to see you two are awake." Bard stood up and ushered us to the table and dropped two plates of something unrecognizably charred. "Thanks Bard." Alice said smiling at him. We all ate in silence and then Bard and Mey-Rin got up, "We're going to head off to bed." Bard said. Mey-Rin nodded, "Call us if you need anything!" Then they were gone. "I'm not really tired, are you?" I asked and Alice shook her head turning to face me, "What should we do?" I thought about it for a second and smiled, "Let's go for a walk in the garden!" She smiled and nodded excitedly. I took her hand and we went out to the moonlit garden. We walked around, taking in the crisp autumn air and the scenery. The white roses Sebastian had asked me to plant shined silver in the moon light and gave the world looked so different. "It's beautiful tonight." Alice remarked. "It is." We walked around the manor in silence, but as we started to reach the entrance to the servant's quarters Alice pulled me to a stop. "What is it?" She looked slightly embarrassed as she took a step closer to me.

She placed her hand on my cheek hesitantly and then we were kissing. It was short, sweet, and over quickly. When she pulled away from me, I could still feel the warmth and pressure of her lips on mine. She covered her own mouth with her hand and blushed wildly, "Finny, I'm so sorry… I.. just.." She looked down and I picked her face up so she would look at me, "You what?" Honestly curious as to what she was going to say. "The last person who kissed me wasn't someone I loved… I wanted to fix that." She had a heavy blush on her face. "You're really cute when you blush, Alice." I said causing her to blush deeper. I closed the short space between us and the world around us seemed to melt away for a moment. We pulled apart and I rested my forehead on hers. Everything was so natural around Alice, I wasn't afraid of doing anything wrong or hurting her although I knew I had to control my strength. "Alice, I-" "Finny, Alice? What are you two doing out of bed?" We jumped apart and turned bright red, "Nothing!" We said in unison as we watched Mister Sebastian. He looked at both of us and then let us into the manor. We ran inside and down the stairs giggling to ourselves. We reached the hallway where the bedrooms were and attempted to stifle our laughter in order to avoid waking up the other two. When we got to our doors I pulled Alice to me and kissed her. We held each other close not wanting to let go. "Finny…. May I ask you something?" I nodded allowing her to pull away from me. I nodded and she blushed again, shying away from me, "Would you mind… staying with me tonight? I'm just… I'm afraid." I nodded, "I'll be in soon." She nodded and I left to change into my pajamas. I knocked on the door and a small 'come in' was replied. I opened the door to find Alice already lying in the bed, a pale pink night gown. I climbed in next to her and held her to me. "Good night, Finny." She said snuggling up to me, "Good night Alice."


	14. Chapter 14

Alice's POV

I woke up to Finny smiling down at me. He kissed me softly, "Good morning, Alice." I cuddled up to him, "Good morning, Finny." His arms tightened around me ever so slightly and butterflies erupted in my stomach. "We should get up. We have work to do." I voiced, but didn't move. "We should." I giggled and reluctantly pulled myself out of his arms. He sat up and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and yawned. I giggled and he cocked his head to the side, "What's so funny?" "You're so cute when you're sleepy." I said from my wardrobe. He smiled sweetly and slipped out of the bed and came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist kissing my cheek. "Alice, there's something I want to tell you." He said still holding me as I tried to find my maid's uniform. "What is it?" I asked, turning around to me a placed my palms on his chest. His face turned a little pink, "Alice, I-" "Alice! Oh! Finny!" Finny relaxed his grip on me and I leaned into him, "Good morning, Mey-Rin." I wrapped my arms around Finny's keeping them around my waist. Mey-Rin smiled, "I just came to tell you breakfast was ready." I nodded and turned back to Finny as she shut the door and looked up at him, "So, what is it?" His face turned pink once more and shook his head, "It's nothing. I'll tell you later after breakfast." I cocked my head to the side, "Are you sure?" He nodded and kissed my forehead, "I'm going to change. I'll be back." He left the room, leaving me alone. "I wonder what he wants to say."

Finny's POV

Bard and Mey-Rin had gone to do their chores, leaving Alice and I alone in the dining room. "So what was it you wanted to say to me, Finny?" Alice asked smiling up at me. I felt my face get hot and I fidgeted slightly, "Oh, it's nothing. I have to go tend to the garden, so I'll see you later." I gave her a tight hug and ran off toward the outside world, as Sebastian came into the room. I took a detour and ended up in the kitchen. Bard stood in the middle of the room in front of an unbaked pie and a flame thrower. "Bard, can I ask you a question?" I asked. He jumped at the sound of my voice. "Finny! What are you doing here?" I tilted my frowned slightly at him, "I don't think Mister Sebastian wants you to use that." Bard put the tool to the side and I walked in as soon as I was sure it was safe. "So what brings you here, Finny?" He asked again as I jumped up onto the counter. "Well…. It's about Alice…" I looked down and took a deep breath hoping Bard would know what I want to say. "What about Alice?" He pulled up a chair from the kitchen table and fell into it. I bit my lip and I felt my face heat up again. "I… I really like her and I think I might…. Ummm…." I couldn't get the words out. Bard watched me trip over my words in silence before bursting out laughing causing me to blush even harder. "Are you trying to tell me you're in love with little Alice?" I didn't answer, just nodded.

Bard leaned forward, "I knew it. So have you told her?" I looked down, "I tried to… I even started to, but we got interrupted. Twice. First by Sebastian last night and then Mey-Rin this morning." "What were you two doing last night?" Bard asked raising his eyebrows. I smiled at the memory, "We went on a stroll through the garden." Bard nodded seeming slightly disappointed with my answer. "Just tell her." "How?" I asked. Bard rolled his eyes, "Just do it." I opened my mouth to reply, but Sebastian cut me off, "Both of you come with me." Bard and me exchanged looks and followed Sebastian up the stairs to a guest room. We all entered and Sebastian closed the door behind us. On the bed lay two suits. "What are these for?" I asked picking up the slightly smaller one. "The Trancy household is holding another ball and we are all expected to attend." I turned to Sebastian quickly, "The Trancy household? After what happened to Alice?" Sebastian sighed, "I agree that going there is less than desirable, but it has to be done. It's tonight so please be get ready. We have to pick up Lady Elizabeth soon." With that Sebastian left us to get dressed. "Don't worry, Finny. It'll be okay." I sighed and picked up the suit, "I hope so."

Ciel's POV

There was no joy as we rode to the joyous chanting from my servants as we rode to the Milford Manor as there had been last time we went to a ball at the Trancy manor. Baldroy was driving my carriage and Finny was driving the cart where Mey-Rin and Alice sat. "They're all being so quiet. It's quite odd," I commented to Sebastian, "I thought they would be excited to go to another ball." Sebastian looked up to me and frowned, "Well considering the events that took place at the Trancy manor with Miss Alice, can you blame them for being a bit reluctant to attend another ball where her captures would surely be." I felt a smirk play on my lips, "They have nothing to worry about. They are Phantomhive servants after all." "While it is true the others can take care of themselves as well as Alice, she doesn't really have the ability to fight off attacks herself." I frowned, "We'll have to fix that when we get back." Sebastian nodded as we pulled up to Elizabeth's home.

"Oh! Ciel! Do you like my new dress?" Lizzy spun around as we walked back to the carriage. I nodded without looking, "It's lovely." I was about to help her into the carriage when she caught sight of something. "Who's that?" I looked over to where she was pointing. "She's my newest servant. Her name is Alice." Elizabeth smiled brightly and her green eyes lit up. She practically ran over to the cart, "Alice!" She greeted as if she'd known her forever. I watched Alice jump and immediately reach out for Finny. 'That's interesting.' I thought as she retracted her hand and looked down to the younger girl. "Yes?" "You look absolutely adorable!" Alice's pale skin became dusted with a pastel pink at Lizzy's compliment. "Thank you. You look lovely as well." Lizzy beamed up at her. IT was true, Lizzy did look beautiful. Her hair up in curls just as it always was. Lizzie had on a dark pink dress with black floral embellishments as well as a pair of diamond earrings and a flower necklace with a diamond center I'd bought for her last Christmas. "Elizabeth, we're going to be late." She snapped out of her daze and looked to me, "Oh, yes! The ball, how could I forget?" I helped my fiancé into the carriage and got in beside her, as well as Paula and Sebastian.

Alice's POV

The carriage started and Finny followed close behind. "Who was that little girl?" I asked curious as to whom I owed thanks for her compliment. "Oh! That's Lady Elizabeth!" Finny answered cheerfully. I smiled at him, although he couldn't see it, due to him driving. This was the first time I'd heard him be cheerful all day. "She's the young masters betrothed." Mey-Rin finished. "Oh? Well she seems lovely." We soon approached the Trancy Manor and dropped off the young master, Lady Elizabeth, her maid whose name I did not know, and Sebastian at the front door before driving around to the same door as the previous occasion we'd entered the manor. Finny jumped off the driver's seat and came around. He lifted me up by the waist out of the cart and placed me on the ground lightly before taking my hand. Bard helped down Mey-Rin and we all stood side by side. I stood slightly behind Finny as I looked up at the house that plagued my nightmares. I took a deep breath and Finny gave my hand a reassuring squeeze. "Alright," I said finally taking hold of Mey-Rin's hand as well, "let's get this over with."


	15. Chapter 15

Finny's POV

I danced with Alice and smiled as we spun around, "Lady Elizabeth was right, Alice. You look absolutely adorable." Alice blushed and looked down at our feet smiling. Alice had on a beautiful, deep green ball gown. It had two thin straps that had ruffles on them. The skirt was large, but not too big to where she could still move comfortably and had a black bottom. Her hair was down in loose curls. My eyes landed on her chest where a small silver heart hung. She caught me looking and her hand flew from my shoulder to her necklace, "It was my mother's…. She gave it to me when I turned sixteen." I smiled down at Alice as she placed her hand back on my shoulder and we continued our dance, "It's beautiful." She smiled and I held her as close to me as her dress would allow. Still, I couldn't shake the feeling of being watched.

Bard's POV

"They are absolutely lovely, aren't they?" Mey-Rin asked leaning against the wall. She had on a large strapless dark purple ball gown, she even had her hair down for once. The only thing that really made her look like the Mey-Rin I knew was her large glasses. I followed her gaze to Finny and Alice and smiled, "Finny told me he loved her." Mey-Rin looked to me in surprise, "Is he going to tell her?" I shrugged and watched as they danced. The smile soon fell off my face, we weren't the only one's watching the happy couple. Across the room a certain purple-haired trio stood staring them down as they whispered to each other. One of them began walking over toward them, I could only assume it was the one who had caused her so much pain. I grabbed Mey-Rin's hand, earning a blush, "Come on." I pulled her onto the dance floor so I was dancing back to back with Finny, "We have trouble." I whispered to him, but it was too late. The young man reached us and extended his hand to Alice as the current song came to an end. "Get away from us," Finny's voice was low and the usual sweetness he had in it was a mere memory. I watched Alice grip Finny's arm tightly for a moment, obviously fearful of the man who stood before her, but she took a deep breath and released his arm, "It's okay, Finny."

We all looked at her as she turned to him, "A lady dances with those who ask her, no matter how vile. That's what my mother told me." She kissed Finny's cheek and turned to the boy and placed her hand in his. I led Finny and Mey-Rin off the floor, never losing sight of the pair. He whispered occasionally to her as they danced and she would scowl at him before replying. "She's a tough little thing, isn't she?" Finny shook his head as he watched her, "You have no idea."

Alice's POV

I kept my eyes locked with my abuser as we danced, "You look beautiful tonight, Miss Alice. It's a shame you came with the gardener." He whispered to me. I scowled at him, "Don't you dare speak of him." He half smiled at me, "You agreed to dance with me. I thought I could at least speak to you about you choice in…. boys." He shot a sideways glance at Finny and I shot daggers into him, "I agreed because I had to. Don't you think for a moment that I enjoy having you're disgusting hands on me." "No, just his." He nodded in Finny's direction and I felt myself flush in anger and embarrassment. "Oh, you haven't… just me then." He smirked down at me and ran his hand across my back. I felt small under his gaze. I met his eye steadily, "Rot in hell." For some reason this made him chuckle slightly before he leaned down once more and whispered in my ear, "There's no escaping, Alice. I own your heart." The dance ended and he tipped my necklace with his finger before heading back to his brothers leaving me alone in the middle of the floor.

I felt two strong hands on me as I was ushered off the dance floor. I didn't fight it as I contemplated what that despicable creature could have meant. "Alice?" I finally looked up to see Finny, Bard, and Mey-Rin all watching me. "I'm sorry. I was… lost in thought." I managed to get out. I leaned slightly into Finny's side and he wrapped his arms around me, "Alice, I think it's time we got you home." I heard Finny say and I nodded. We'd only arrived at the Trancy household a few hours before, but I couldn't argue that I wanted to leave. Bard said something I didn't catch and left. I felt the world begin to spin. I pulled myself into a standing position and all at once the world went black.

Finny's POV

"Alice!" I fell to my knees beside her as did Mey-Rin. "Sebastian." "Yes, my lord." Sebastian moved Mey-Rin out of the way slightly and checked her vital signs. "She seems fine, just unconscious. It's probably simple her body's response to being in a house where such unspeakable things happened to her." Sebastian picked her up effortlessly and handed Alice's limp body to me, the same way he had when we'd first retrieved her from this horrible place. "I trust you three will be more than able to see her home?" We all nodded and we started on our way home. Bard drove and I sat in the cart with Mey-Rin and the semi-conscious Alice. "We never should have gone to that party." I announced and the others murmured their agreements.

"The stars are beautiful tonight." Alice's voice sounded out to us like music about half way home. "Alice! You're awake." She sat up and smiled sweetly at me, only to blush at the realization of the position we were in. I had my arms wrapped around her waist and her body pressed close to mine as she sat on my lap. This position might not have been a problem had it not been to the inevitable presence of Mey-Rin and Bard. She moved slowly to the seat next to me and I took her hand. "We're almost home. How are you feeling?" Bard asked, not bothering to look at us, but I could hear the smile in his voice causing me to turn pink as well. "I'm okay…. What happened?" "You fainted, yes you did." "Oh…" She looked down and we all rode the rest of the trip in silence.

Alice's POV

"I'm fine, Finny." I promised as he entered my room. I'd finally changed into my light purple nightgown. "I just wanted to check again." Worry was written across the young gardener's usually cheerful face. I slipped my arms around him and placed a quick kiss on his lips as he wrapped his arms around my waist. "I'm fine. It was just…" I searched for the right way to phrase it, "Well… I don't think I should go near that manor again." Finny slipped out of my grasp and takes my hand leading me to the bed. He sits down and pulls me down next to him. "Alice, there's something I need to tell you." The serious of his tone concerned me, but I nodded as if giving him permission to continue. A pink blush dusted his cheeks lightly as his eyes met mine. "Alice… I love you."


	16. Chapter 16

Finny's POV

Alice and I just stared at each other for a moment as the confession I'd just made to her dawdled in the air between us. Suddenly, Alice's face broke out into a huge smiled and she tackled me, knocking me back onto the bed with her practically on top of me. She placed a lingering kiss on my lips and I held her close to me. When she finally pulled away our eyes met and the same smile was still plastered on her face, "I love you too, Finny." I smiled and kissed her in the same fashion she'd kissed me only a second before and we both laughed as we broke apart, unable to keep the happiness hat was bubbling inside of us down. We laid on the bed like that for a long time. Just laughing and hold each other.

Bard's POV

I smiled at Mey-Rin as we listened outside the door. "So he told her." Mey-Rin nodded excitedly as we listened to them giggle through the door. "Are you two eves dropping on Finny and Alice?" We both jumped and I put my hand over my heart that was beating much too fast to be normal. "You've got to stop doing that." "You two need to stop interfering with the lives of those two." "What's going on?" We turned to see Alice had opened the door with Finny standing right behind her. "This came for you, Alice." Sebastian handed her a letter and she opened it in front of us while Finny held the door open. Both of them were in their Pajamas, obviously they were spending the night together. None of us brought it up. After a day like today, we didn't really blame them for wanting to be together.

Alice's hand flew to her mouth as she read and tears began to fall down her cheeks. She held it to her and turned into Finny's chest and began to sob. He wrapped his arms around her and held her to him. He looked up at me as if to ask what to do. I shrugged, "Alice, What is it?" She handed the letter back to us and Sebastian took it. He read it with indifference and then looked to us. "It seems her mother has fallen ill and her brother is requesting she come home to see her." She turned back now that her breathing was starting to even itself. With a ragged breath she looked to Sebastian, "Mister Sebastian, would it be okay if I…" She choked on a sob and he nodded, "I'll arrange for you and Finny to leave tomorrow morning to see her." She looked up as did Finny in surprise, "I assumed you would want him along. He seems to be a form of comfort for you. I hope your mother gets better soon." With that Sebastian left us all alone in the hallway. As soon as he was out of sight Alice began crying again and fell into Finny. He petted her hair and held her to him in a comforting fashion. He kissed the top of her head and looked to me and Mey-Rin. "I'm going to take Alice to bed. Good night" We murmured our responses and then looked to each other. "Poor Alice. She's really not having a good day." I shook my head and looked at the closed door, "Finny will take care of her."

Alice's POV

I woke up expecting to be in Finny's arms, but found myself alone in my bed. I sat up and looked for him, but he was gone. I got up and dressed and walked down the hall to the servant's dining room and found him. He was already dressed and had his head resting in his crossed arms at the table. I smiled lightly at Bard and Mey-Rin, "Is he asleep?" Mey-Rin nodded and I went to sit next to Finny at the table. I looked at his sleeping face, he looked so peaceful. I smiled and ran my hand through his unruly hair, "Finny?" His eyes opened halfway and he gave me a sleepy smile, "Good morning, Alice." He sat up and looked around smiling at the other two. "Finny, how long were you out here?" He looked at the clock, "About an hour. I woke up early to make sure everything was ready to go when you woke up." I couldn't help but smile and kissed his cheek, "Thank you. You didn't have to do that." He smiled and took my hand. "Are you ready?" I smiled sadly and nodded. I examined him as we walked, noticing he wasn't in his usual gardener's attire. He had on a white dress shirt and a brown vest tucked into dark brown pants with dress shoes. He looked nice. I pulled him to a stop in the hallway and he turned back to me obviously confused as to why we were stopping.

Finny's POV

I turned to Alice and she pulled me close to her kissing me the way she had after I told her I loved her. I blushed, but pulled her close to me. When she pulled away we were both slightly out of breath. "What was that for?" I asked. "You look very handsome Finny," I blushed and she giggled pulling me along being her, "come on now. We wouldn't want to be late. You get to meet my family." I followed still dazed from the kiss. Alice looked beautiful. She had on a dress the color of the sky on a clear day that went just past her knee and a black bow around her waist tied in the front. Her mother's necklace was still hanging around her neck and she had on black flats. We ran down the halls to the cart and I helped her in before jumping into the driver's seat. Sebastian had given me the directions this morning, but he told me if I forgot Alice knew the way much to my relief. We pulled up to the house and I helped her out. We started up the path when I stopped her, suddenly nervous. She looked back at me concerned filled her eyes, "What's wrong?" I looked down, "Do you think they'll like me?" Alice laughed and stood on her tiptoes kissing my cheek, "They'll love you."


	17. Chapter 17

Alice's POV

I laced my fingers through Finny's and we walked up to the door. I opened it and walked in, "Hello? Patrick? Anna?" "So you're back." Patrick stood up from the chair in the corner and eyed me suspiciously. I gave Finny's hand a tight squeeze. I'd almost forgotten how much he looked like my father. "Where's Mother?" I asked. Patrick laughed to himself, "You asked me that the day you left, too." Patrick turned from me to Finny, "Who the hell are you?" "This is Finny. The gardener at Phantomhive manor." I said, "Finny, this is my-" "Is he your boyfriend?" Patrick asked interrupting me. I straightened myself up, not that it did any good against Patrick's height, "Yes. He is." Patrick chuckled slightly, but it was void of any humor, "You leave for three months and you come back with a boyfriend." He shook his head and then looked to Finny and pointed at him, "I think it's time we had a chat. Mum's in her room. Go see her while I talk with, Timmy." "It's Finny." I said matching the harshness in his tone before leaving. Finny could handle him.

I slipped into my mother's room and smiled at her. She was sitting up in the bed. "Hello, Mother." I felt tears in my eyes and saw them form in her own as she saw me, "Alice." I went to her and embraced her. I cried quietly. She pulled away from me and placed her hand on my cheek, "Oh, Alice. You look so well. They've been treating you well at your home?" I nodded and brushed away my tears. "I have someone you need to meet." She patted the bed, "Hold on now. I want to see you first." I sat next to her and she smiled, "Tell me about what you've done." I looked down and smiled, "Well I've gone to two balls, I've been working as a maid, I made new friends." I began listing and retelling the tales of my adventures at the Phantomhive manor. My mother's smile suddenly vanished and it was replaced with a look of sadness, "Did you love him?" I frowned, "Who?" "The boy you were with that night. Did you love him?" My eyes widened, "How do you-" She placed her hand of my cheek and wiped away a tear, "A mother knows, Alice. Did you love him?" I shook my head and told her of my night in the Trancy manor. My mother and I cried together for a short while before I straightened myself and wiped my eyes, "But Mother I really do need you to meet someone. Do you mind?" My mother shook her head and I went out to retrieve Finny.

Mary Ann's POV

I watched as my daughter came back into the room dragging a blonde boy behind her. They stood in front of me and she smiled brightly, "Mother, this is Finny. He's my boyfriend." Patrick stood behind her and nodded, a ghost of a smile on his face signaled his approval. "It's nice to meet you." He shook my hand gingerly and kept his other hand in Alice's. "It's nice to meet you, too, Mrs. Moore." Alice smiled to him, practically glowing. "Mother, is it alright if I introduce Finny to Anna and Robert?" She asked and I nodded. She placed a kiss on my cheek before turning and leaving with the boy. "He really loves our Alice." Patrick said watching them as they left. I knew better than to tell Patrick what had happened to his sister. He would assume it was Finny, but it couldn't have been him. Alice was too happy for it to be him. "I think she loves him, too." Patrick continued echoing my thoughts. I pushed myself out of the bed, "I'm going to make dinner. I'd like to get to know him." I made my way to the door before stopping and taking hold on my eldest son's sleeve, "Mother?" He reached out as if to steady me and we locked eyes, "Do you think he loves her enough to marry her?" I asked. All I'd ever wanted was to watch my children grow up and get married. Patrick looked after where they'd gone and a true smile crossed his lips for the first time in ages, "They've both got some growing up to do first, but I think that boy would do anything for her." I smiled and nodded, "Good."

Alice's POV

I helped my mother in the kitchen as Finny played on the floor with Robert and Nathaniel. Anna was talking to Patrick swiftly and quietly in the corner of the room and I smiled. It felt like home. I watched as Finny rolled the small, wooden train in front of Nathaniel earning an explosion of giggles and claps from the two year old. "It wasn't Finny. That night after the ball." My mother asked as she continued to peel potatoes. I shook my head, "No, Finny would never do that. I told you he saved me. He loves me," I felt myself smiled wider as the last part left my lips. My mother smiled too, "You love him as well?" I nodded and looked back over to the boys. Robert had jumped on Finny's back and they were all laughing. "So you two haven't…" My mother didn't finish her sentence when I turned bright red, "No. We haven't." She nodded, "Good." I bit my lip and hurried to finish dinner wishing Bard's idea to use dynamite or a flamethrower actually worked in speeding up the process.

We ate dinner quietly, only occasionally did my mother or Patrick question Finny about his life or about our relationship. After dinner I hugged my siblings and kissed my mother good-bye before taking Finny's hand. He led me out to the cart and lifted me up by my waist and placed me in the cart before climbing into the driver's seat. I waved at my family and sat as close to Finny as possible. As soon as we were out of sight I placed a kiss on his cheek, "I told you they'd like you." He smiled, but didn't reply as we drove home in a comfortable silence.

Patrick's POV

I held little Nathaniel as I watched the young boy who'd fallen in love with my sister help her into the carriage. She giggled and he jumped into the driver's seat. She waved to us and we waved back. "I like him." Robert said smiling after them. "I have a feeling we'll be seeing him again very soon," I said honestly as my mother coughed and retreated back to her room.


	18. Chapter 18

Alice's POV

"We're home!" Finny chimed as we got into the manor. I giggled and smiled at him. "Alice, how was your mother?" Sebastian appeared seemingly out of nowhere. "She's alright, I suppose. She was in bed when we got there, but she got up and ate dinner with us." I smiled at Finny before looking back to Sebastian. "I'm glad to hear it. As of tomorrow, the young master has a new assignment for you." I nodded and waited for my instructions. Sebastian looked down at me and a light smile greeted his lips, "The baby you've been making clothes for was born last night. The young master believes that the mother could use some help, seeing as this is new to her. In light of your experience with children, we'd like you to go and see if you could be of any assistance." I smiled, "Oh! Of course!" Sebastian's smile widened, "Excellent. I will escort you there in the morning. Good night." I took Finny's hand and we walked back down to the servant's quarters. "I'm so excited! I love babies!" I gushed as we walked down the hall hand-in-hand. Finny didn't say anything, just smiled. I turned to him as we got to our rooms, "Finny, are you alright? You're being abnormally quiet." I said watching him with concern. Finny leaned down slightly and kissed me hard on the lips. He pulled back leaving me in surprise. "Everything's fine, Alice. I need to go talk to Bard." With that I was left dazed and confused in the hallway.

Finny's POV

I knocked once on Bard's door before letting myself in. "Bard?" He was lying on his bed reading a book when I entered he looked up at me, and smiled, but the small quickly melted away when he saw my face. "Finny, what's wrong?" He sat up and put the book on the small table next to him. I shifted uncomfortably in front of the closed door, "Bard, I think I have a problem." He sighed and motioned for me to get the chair from the desk in the corner. "Come on then, sit down." I did and he stared at me in anticipation. "Alice is going to take care of a baby tomorrow." Bard nodded, "Okay, and?" I looked down embarrassed, "Well… She said she really liked babies." Bard leaned forward, "Where are you going with this Finny?" I tilted my head to the side, "Well, I was thinking and I thought I should ask…. Where do babies come from?" Bard stared at me for a second and then burst out laughing. "I thought you were going to ask something else." He leaned back, "Well… babies…"

Bard's POV

I sent a slightly confused Finny out of my room. "Why would anyone do that though?" I laughed at his question. "You'll figure it our eventually, Finny." He walked off down the corridor and I laughed to myself. "What did Finny ask you?" I turned to my right to see Mey-Rin standing outside her door with concern written on her face. "He wanted to know where babies come from." I crossed my arms and looked down the hall where Finny had just disappeared into his room. "Did you tell him?" She asked. I snickered, "Of course I told him." "Why was he asking?" I turned to Mey-Rin. "What's with all the questions?" She tapped her fingers together, obviously embarrassed, "Well… he and Alice are staying in the same room… I just thought maybe… Finny wanted a baby." My eyes widened for a second. The thought that Finny might want a baby had never crossed my mind. I shook the thought from my mind, "Finny and Alice are only kids. They don't want a baby. Alice is going to take care of one tomorrow. That's why he wanted to know." Mey-Rin sighed, "Alright. Good."

Alice's POV

I frowned as I brushed my hair in the mirror. Finny had been acting weird ever since we got back from visiting my family. I wonder if it was something Patrick said to him. I shrugged it off as the door opened slowly with a light knock. I turned to see a smiling Finny standing in my door. I put my brush down and smiled, "Finny… did you talk to Bard?" He nodded and walked over to me and pulled me to him. He wrapped his arms around me in a tight hug and I hugged him back. I pulled away and looked up at him, cupping his cheek, "Finny, are you alright?" He nodded, "I'm fine, Alice. It's getting late, we should go to sleep." I nodded still not convinced everything was alright and climbed in bed next to Finny. He wrapped his arms around me and held me to his chest, "Good night, Alice." He placed a kiss on the top of my head and smiled down at me. "Good night, Finny."


	19. Chapter 19

Alice's POV

I knocked on the door of the unfamiliar house and waited. When it opened a woman stood holding a crying newborn. "Can I help you?" "Mrs. Abberline? I was set by the Earl Phantomhive to assist you with your baby. He was a friend of your husband's. I'm Alice Moore" The woman was in her late twenties with long beautiful brown hair and brown eyes. She bounced the baby as she let me in. "They sent word saying they were sending someone. I just didn't think it'd be someone so… young." She handed me the baby. It was a little boy with dark eyes and hair just like his mother. "What's his name?" I asked bouncing him and he stopped crying. She watched me for a moment and then nodded in disbelief, "His name is Gabriel. I have to go to work. I'll be back this evening." I nodded, "I'll take care of him." She nodded and within seconds she was out the door. I rocked on the balls of my feet with the baby and smiled down at him. After he fell asleep I put him in his basinet and looked around his nursery. It was simple. The walls and furniture were white. The only real color was in his drawers and on the shelves. The toys master Ciel had given to the baby and the clothing I had sown for him. I heard a knock on the door and went to answer it.

"Finny? What are you doing here?" I asked, surprised at the sudden and unexpected arrival of the young gardener. He strode in smiling, "Sebastian said I could come pick you up because I wanted to see the baby." I nodded, "Oh! Mrs. Abberline should be back soon. I'll show you the baby but you have to be quiet. He's sleeping." Finny followed me into the nursery and looked into the baby's cradle. A look of pure elation passes over his face. The baby began to stir and I picked him up before the tears could start and began to rock him again. He opened his brown eyes and looked up at me making gurgling noises. "Do you want to hold him?" I asked as I watched Finny stare at the baby, completely mesmerized. He looked from me to the baby, "I won't hurt him, will I?" I remembered Finny's strength and frowned considering his question. I took a step closer to him and kissed him lightly on the lips, "You'll be fine, just be gentle. Have you never held a baby before?" I asked and he shook his head. "Follow me." I led him to the kitchen, "Sit down." He took a seat in one of the kitchen chairs and I placed the baby into his arms, "Support his head." I instructed and Finny rocked him cautiously. I smiled at the scene. After a few minutes Finny handed him back to me. Little Gabriel was sound asleep. I went back and placed him in his crib and came back to Finny, kissing his gently on the lips. "What was that for?" I held his hands and smiled up at him, "You're adorable." We sat on the sofa in the living room, cuddled together waiting for Mrs. Abberline when Finny broke the silence, "Alice, do you want a baby?" I smiled, "Eventually. Not right now, but eventually." He nodded and pulled me closer.

Finny's POV

I wondered silently to myself what it would be like if Alice and I had a baby. I smiled and looked down at her, I was about to say something when she pulled away from me, "Mrs. Abberline, this is Finny. He's the gardener from the Phantomhive estate. They sent him to fetch me. I hope you don't mind." Mrs. Abberline was a young woman, probably a little younger than Sebastian. She had long brown hair she'd tied back and brown eyes. She looked tired. "I don't mind. How's Gabriel?" I stood beside Alice as she looked back toward the nursery, "Asleep. I'll be back tomorrow to watch him for you again." The older woman nodded and Alice took my hand, "It's time to go, Finny."

"Hi!" I jumped up onto the counter watching as Bard cooked. Well he mixed ingredients anyways. "Did you pick up Alice?" He asked not looking at me. "Of course! I even got to hold the baby!" I said excitedly. Bard looked up and smirked at me, "Thanks great, Kid. I hope it didn't make you want one of your own." He laughed to himself and I didn't answer. He watched me for a moment, "You don't want one, right?" I avoided him gaze, "Alice said she wanted one… eventually." Bard shook his head, "Don't have a baby, Finny. You're like a baby yourself." "I am not!" I protested and Bard just looked at me. "I'm telling you as your friend, Finny. Don't do it." I watched Bard quietly and nodded "Okay."

Alice's POV

"You should have seen him with the baby. It was adorable." I said to Mey-Rin as I helped her fold the recently washed and dried clothing. "You don't want a baby do you, Alice?" I shook my head, "Not right now. When I'm a little older perhaps." "With Finny?" I blushed heavily and saw Mey-Rin smile to herself, but she said nothing. We finished the folding in silence and I picked up the basket of Master Ciel's clothing. "I'll bring this up to his room." She nodded and grabbed the basket of Bard's clothes and we headed off in our separate directions to put away the clothes. When we finished putting the clothes away we headed down for supper. I felt a pair of arms wrap around my wait from behind and turned so I was facing my captor. Finny placed a kiss on nose and we sat together at the table eating with Mey-Rin and Bard. Finny took my hand and I couldn't help, but smile. Everything was perfect.


	20. Chapter 20

Finny's POV

"Sebastian!" I called running down the hall, only stopping when I slammed into the butler. "What is it, Finny?" He asked holding me at arm's length. I looked up to him and cried, "Alice is sick!" I explained to him why I thought Alice might be sick and he sighed before following me back to her room. "Miss Moore?" He asked as we entered the room. Alice was lying on the bed where I'd left her. She had been throwing up, much to her own displeasure. "Maybe she caught something while she was in town? She's been going to take care of Mrs. Abberline's baby every day for almost three months now." Sebastian sighed as he watched Alice pull herself out of bed, "I'm fine, really I am." He shook his head, "Alice, get back in bed. I need to see what's wrong with you. Finny, could you please escort Mey-Rin to Mrs. Abberline's home?" I nodded hesitantly and went to go find Mey-Rin, leaving Sebastian to take care of Alice.

I rushed back to the manor after leaving Mey-Rin to take care of the Abberline baby and dashed down the hall to Alice's room, but the door was locked. "Alice?" I knocked softly, Sebastian opened the door towering over me. "Please go tend to your chores Finny. You may see Alice later." I bounced anxiously on the balls of my feet and nodded. I knew that any attempt to protest against Sebastian would do me no good. I just wanted to know what was wrong with Alice. She'd been getting sick on and off for the past few days, but she'd told me it was nothing to worry about. I hadn't wanted to upset her so I didn't say anything. I tried to steady my mind by working on the garden. All I had to do was plant some flowers and I'd be done. It didn't work and once I was finished I had to get Mey-Rin from where she'd taken over for Alice and brought her home. It was getting dark now and I still hadn't seen Alice all day. I walked into the kitchen and ate quietly through dinner while Mey-Rin and Bard talked about random things. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Sebastian walk by. Alice must be alone. I jumped up and started running out of the kitchen without a word. I was almost to Alice's room when I once again ran into the butler. I bounced back shocked, sure he'd been going toward the other side of the manor. "Finny, don't go into Alice. Wait for her to come to you." "But she's sick." I argued not wanting to leave her alone. "Just wait, Finny." I nodded unable to shake the feeling that Sebastian knew something I didn't.

I slipped on my pajamas and pulled out my red hair pins as I got ready for bed. I still hadn't seen Alice and the temptation to go across the hall to her room was overwhelming. I sat on my bed not wanting to go to sleep. It was weird going to sleep in my own bed, almost foreign. I'd been with Alice almost every night since she'd gotten here. If I left her alone she'd have nightmares about the time she'd spent at the Trancy manor. I shook the thought from my head. I didn't want to think about that. That night was too sad and horrible to dwell on. A soft knock on my door broke me out of my thoughts, "Come in?" The door opened and Alice stood there, looking at the floor. Her face was wet from crying and her blue eyes were puffy. Her white hair that was usually tied back by a ribbon hung wildly around her face and clung to her wet cheeks. She'd changed and was now wearing a knee length white nightgown similar to one I'd seen Mey-Rin wear once. I jumped up and ran to embrace her, hoping to stop her from crying anymore, but she held up a hand to stop me. I stopped, feeling hurt at the gesture. "Sit down, Finny." Her voice was horse and raspy. I sat down on the bed and she sat beside me. Neither one of us saying anything in the tense silence.

"Alice, please tell me what's wrong." I asked clutching her hands. Her eyes finally met mine and tears slowly trickled down her face. "I'm so sorry." The words were barely audible and I felt my heart break into a hundred tiny pieces. "Sorry? For what? Alice, you've done nothing wrong." I couldn't imagine my dear Alice doing anything that she'd need to apologize for. "Something has happened… Do you remember when… when I was taken to the Trancy manor?" She asked her voice shaky, but I could hear her trying to keep it steady. I nodded, "How could I forget? That was horrible, Alice, but I don't understand. That wasn't your fault. What does it have to do with anything?" She looked down and shook her head and tears began to fall onto the bed between us, some landing onto our hands. "Alice, please just tell me. I love you, I want you to be okay." I pleaded, fighting back tears of my own. "Finny, I'm not okay." She covered her mouth and sobbed into it. "Are you sick?" I asked although I'd already convinced myself she was, but she shook her head, "No, Finny. I'm not sick." "Then what it is?" I asked growing slightly impatient that she wouldn't tell me what was wrong. "I'm pregnant."


	21. Chapter 21

Finny's POV

I laughed slightly and looked up at Alice feeling relieved, "That's it then? We're going to have a baby." Alice shook her head and looked at our hands, "Finny, you know that this baby isn't yours." I pulled Alice into a tight hug, "Alice, I love you and if you want the baby to be mine, then it will be." I pulled away and Alice gave me a confused look. "Finny, you don't have to do that… I'm getting rid of it." I shook my head quickly, "Alice, you don't have to do that. You don't want to. It's your baby." Alice started to cry again and I took her into my arms. "Please, Alice. Don't cry." I kissed her cheek. "What choice do I have?" I looked past her and thought for a moment about what I could do to help her. I sighed finally making up my mind.

Alice's POV

"Finny?" He knelt in front of me on one knee and took my hand, "Alice, I love you. I don't have a ring or anything right now, but I don't want you to be unhappy and I don't want you to have to lose your baby. So I have to ask if… you'll marry me?" I stared down at Finny for a long time and finally shook my head, "Finny, I can't let you marry me just because I'm pregnant with someone else's baby." Finny didn't move, "I don't care if it's not mine. I'll love it like it is because it's yours. Please, Alice?" Finally I nodded, "Okay." I felt tears fall down my cheeks again. Finny's lips met mine in a sweet, chaste kiss.

Finny's POV

"You're going to do what?" Bard asked looking down at me like I'd told him I was going to learn how to fly. "I'm going to marry Alice." "Why are you rushing into this, Finny? You just turned eighteen." I looked down and took a deep breath before looking back up, "She's pregnant." Bard almost dropped the pan he was holding, but caught it at the last second. "Finny, I told you-" "It's not mine, Bard." Bard looked at me confused, but then realization came over his features. "So have you asked her brother yet?" I shook my head, "I'm leaving in an hour to go ask him." Bard nodded and extended his hand to me. I took it and he shook my hand tightly, "Good luck with that, Finny."

I rode up to Alice's house and knocked on the door. I waited, rocking back and forth on my heels for someone to open the door. When they finally did, I looked up to see Patrick staring down at me. "You're Alice's boyfriend aren't you? Jimmy?" I nodded, "It's Finny. I wanted to ask you something, Patrick. If that's alright." Patrick sighed, "Alright come in." He opened the door wider and allowed me to pass him inside. He motioned to the couch. I sat down in the chair across from him in silence. We stayed quiet for a long time until I finally broke the silence. "I wanted to ask your permission to marry your sister." Patrick looked at me for a long time, "Why?" I frowned, I wasn't expecting any questions, "I love her." Patrick shook his head, his dark green eyes boring into me. "It's more than that. Tell me honestly. Did my sister get herself into trouble?" I met his gaze, debating on whether I should wait and let Alice tell him. After a moment I sighed. "Alice was kidnapped about four months ago… she's pregnant."

Patrick's POV

Who was this kid? Honestly did he expect me to believe that? "If it's not yours why do you want to marry her?" Finny looked at me seriously, "I told you. I love her and she deserves to be happy." The look in his eyes told me he wasn't lying, but I didn't want to believe him. If I did, it meant my sister had experienced a tragic loss of innocence, something I should have protected her from. I leaned forward and looked at the young boy in front of me, "You swear that it's not your baby?" He nodded, "I swear, but if Alice will let me, I'll pretend it is." I got up and shook my head, "Wait here."

I helped my frail mother out of the room and into the chair. She cried when I told her about Alice and her face was still wet. She looked intently at Finny and then looked up to me and nodded. I sighed, "Alice told my mother about her kidnapping. So I believe you. She also said you saved her, is that true?" Finny nodded, "The other servants and I. As well as the young master." The Earl Phantomhive risked his life to save my sister? I'd have to thank him someday. "Then I have no reason for you not to marry Alice." My mother leaned forward and took the boy's hands, "Here, take this. I want you to propose to her with it." When the young boy opened his hand a small diamond ring was in his palm, "Mother, that's your eternity ring." She nodded, "Their father got it for me on our one year anniversary. I want you to have it." The boy nodded and placed it in his pocket before leaving.

Finny's POV

I got back to Phantomhive manor and raced down the hall to Alice's room. I knocked on the door and opened it without waiting for an answer. "Alice?" Alice sat on her bed looking down at the floor. She looked up to me as I entered the room. I crossed to her and got down on one knee in front of her, "Alice, I know I already asked, but I wanted to do it properly." I pulled out the ring her mother had given me and held it up to her, "Alice? Will you marry me?" She nodded and I slipped the ring onto her finger. "Finny… is this my mother's…?" I nodded, "She gave it to me. So I could ask you properly."

Alice's POV

I felt a rush of happiness wash over me as Finny slipped the ring on my finger. Part of it was my own, but another was something else. The scene of my mother and father standing together happy with a newborn in my mother's arms. I was pulled back into reality. "Finny… is this my mother's…?" Finny nodded, "She gave it to me. So I could ask you properly." I felt tears begin to fall down my face and I fell into Finny's arms and kissed him. I rested my forehead on his when we broke apart. "I love you." He smiled, "I love you too."


	22. Chapter 22

Alice's POV

"I can't do this." I confessed to Mey-Rin in a panic. She laughed quietly, "It's a bit late for that, Alice. Besides you look lovely." I had on a simple ivory gown with lace sleeves the young master had given me as a gift. Mey-Rin had put my hair up in a simple, yet elegant looking bun. "Just one more thing." She placed the veil over my face and I took a deep breathe. "Everyone knows. They all know he's only going to marry me becomes I'm pregnant." Mey-Rin huffed in protest, "Alice Moore, stop it. You know that's not true." I sighed, "I know… I suppose I'm just nervous." Mey-Rin's face broke out into a small smile, "Everything will be fine. You love each other after all." I nodded and took a deep breathe, "Okay.. Here we go."

Finny's POV

I shifted nervously on my feet and Bard laughed at me, "Calm down, Finny. Here she comes." He was right. The doors of the church opened wide to reveal a figure in white. My breath caught in my throat. I could barely make out Alice's face behind the veil, but she still looked beautiful. After our vows I removed her veil and her blue eyes greeted me. I froze. A blush crept on my cheeks and Bard nudged me from behind, "Kiss her." He mumbled to me under his breath. I couldn't do it. I'd kissed her before, but this was different. This kiss would be in front of people declaring that we were married. It was the kiss that would change everything. "Finny?" Alice's voice snapped me out of my thoughts and I took her into my arms and kissed her lips sweetly. I pulled away after a moment and everyone was clapping, "I love you." She giggled and took my hand, "I love you too."

Victoria's POV

I sat bored watching Mey-Rin polish the silver. I was due any day and Sebastian had ordered me not to do anything because anytime I tried to help my swollen abdomen got in the way. I touched the ring on my left hand and let the wedding play over again in my mind. I was suddenly broken out of my thoughts by a pain in my stomach and a warm liquid running down my leg, "Mey-Rin? I think the baby's coming." Mey-Rin looked up at me and called for Sebastian who helped me to my room. Mey-Rin left me in Sebastian's care to go fetch Finny, who was instructed to stay outside until the delivery.

Finny's POV

It seemed like forever before I heard a small cry replace the screams behind Alice's door. Sebastian didn't look at me as he carried a small crying bundle to the wash room. He came back a few moments later, still ignoring me and went back into Alice's room. After a few minutes he opened the door, "Finny, you can-" I was in the door and by Alice's side before he could finish. I kissed her forehead and looked down at the little bundle she was holding. "It's a boy." She said. "What are you going to name him?" I asked. She looked up at me and laughed slightly, "We. You are my husband. You get a say in what we name our baby." It had only been five months since the wedding and I wasn't used to the idea of being married. We looked at each other for a moment, "Edward." We smiled to each other. "Can I hold him?" She nodded and handed me the baby. He looked up at me with Alice's eyes. He had his father's hair. I shook the though from my head and looked back down to Alice, "He's beautiful." I kissed her again and gave the baby back to her. Our little family was going to be happy together, forever.

_The End _


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